Listen to Your Mothers

Remember when the Surgeon General declared a public health advisory about parents’ stress levels in the United States? In case you missed it, the report called out that almost half of parents are too stressed to function most days. It included a long list of parental stressors, calling for policy and program changes to better support the wellbeing of parents and caregivers. One key recommendation? Better paid leave policies. We’re one of the only countries in the world without a national paid family leave mandate. Only folks in 14 states have access to state-led programs. So today, on World Mental Health Day, I decided to look into how paid leave impacts mental health in other countries: 🇸🇪 In Sweden, when fathers received 30 days of paid leave after the birth of a child, antidepressant prescriptions for mothers decreased by 26% 🇨🇦 In Canada, mothers with access to paid leave report a 14% lower risk of postpartum depression compared to those without it 🇩🇪 In Germany, the 2007 reformed policy led to a 20% reduction in mental health conditions AND fathers reported higher life satisfaction after taking leave 🇭🇰 In Hong Kong, expanding paid leave from 10-14 weeks led to a 22% decrease in depression among mothers 🇧🇪 In Belgium, parents who take parental leave see a 20% improvement in mental health, with lower rates of anxiety and depression And closer to home: 🇺🇸 In California, having access to 8 weeks of partially paid leave reduced maternal depression by up to 17%! These are just a few data points I found with a quick search. But it made it pretty clear: paid leave makes a real difference and drives better mental health outcomes. And by supporting parents and caregivers through these policies, families will thrive - which also strengthens our economy and society. #mentalhealth #worldmentalhealthday #paidleave

Some photos from a recent planning meeting that founders, Katrina, Renée and Miriam had to discuss some big milestones. Our big accomplishments were officially establishing LYM as an LLC, signing our operating agreement and hosting a brainstorming session on our service delivery model! 📸: Renée Ọmọladé (Omolade) Katrina M. Miriam Rubin, MBA All while using Katrina's daughter's whiteboard which we think fits right in! 🖍️ #ListenToYourMothers #WorkingMoms

These stats from Parentaly’s new report on paid parental leave are heartbreaking. ➡️ Pg. 10 - “24% of return-to-work transitions are not fully announced to the relevant team members.” ➡️ Pg. 13 - Women who “...take more than six months of parental leave are 38% less likely to get a raise and half as likely to get promoted within 18 months of their return as those who take less than six months.” ➡️ Pg. 27 - “37% of parents say they faced bias or discrimination at some point during their parental leave transition.” The good news is that it doesn’t take much to turn that around to a more positive state. And as the Parentaly report highlights, chances are, your next hire will determine whether or not to accept your offer based on your available parental leave benefits (see page 22). There are so many other golden nuggets in this report like what teams should do before and after someone goes on leave, how manager empathy and training can do wonders for employee retention, and more. #listentoyourmothers #workingparents #paidleave

We're looking forward to speaking at this conference in November. Would love to have you join us if you're in the Boston Area! Register here: https://lnkd.in/eiw8h7ke

This year marks McKinsey & Company’s tenth anniversary of their Women in the Workplace report (find the link in the comments👇 ). Here are the key findings you can’t afford to miss: ➡️ There’s little progress with the "broken rung" While nearly 30% of women are in the C-Suite, nearly double as compared to 9 years ago, women continue to be underrepresented in manager roles, especially women of color. ➡️ Women leaders face unique challenges They're more likely to be questioned on their competence, experience microaggressions, and get burned out. ➡️ True parity will take decades By the time women in senior leadership reach true parity, we’ll have 12 more presidential elections. It will take 48 years (but hopefully not that long to fix the child care crisis)! Our biggest takeaway is that flexibility is a real retention winner. Women who have flexible work arrangements are more likely to be satisfied with their jobs and less likely to leave. What can we do to create a more equitable workplace for women? Let's discuss in the comments! #listentoyourmothers #workingmothers #womeninworkplace

Don’t miss this important talk about pregnancy loss and improving workplace policies - today at 12pm ET!

Check out Listen to Your Mothers' co-founder, Katrina M. featured in Benepass's most recent blogpost on Employee Benefits Benchmarking. “The most impactful step that HR leaders and employers can take to attract and retain top talent is to offer as much flexibility as possible within the scope of their business operations and services. A competitive, comprehensive, and equitable benefits program must address what parents and caregivers most need to balance work and family responsibilities—including flexibility in time off and leaves, flexible work schedules, and hybrid or remote work.” - Katrina M. Link to full article in the comments. #benefits #peopleandculture #flexibility #listentoyourmothers

📢 Benefits are of no use to anyone if they just sit in a policy handbook. This Newsweek article (link in comments) brings to light what many working parents are thinking: taking full advantage of company benefits can sometimes feel like asking for too much, but is critical to burnout prevention and employee retention. Here are a few ways to encourage employees to use the benefits your organization offers: 👉 Regularly review utilization rates for benefits and PTO your organization offers 👉 Provide ongoing training for managers and employees on available benefits, flexible work policies, leave and PTO coverage planning 👉 Ensure that senior management is modeling taking time off, talking openly about responsibilities outside of work, and upholding boundaries around work/life 👉 Solicit feedback from employees on current benefit offerings to inform future policy and benefit offerings Don’t let your benefits collect dust. #listentoyourmothers #workingparents #workplacebenefits

"Childcare has become the make-or-break benefit for employees," according to this article put out this week by the Boston Business Journal (https://lnkd.in/eYagtMB4) Of particular note to employers "66% of working parents planning to expand their families in the future say they would wait until they were at a company with better family planning benefits." Shout out to the companies (Seamen's Bank) and coalitions (Massachusetts Business Roundtable, Massachusetts Business Coalition for Early Childhood Education, Strategies for Children) featured in this article who have been working together to develop creative employer-led childcare solutions. Let's keep the momentum going!

A few weeks ago, the U.S. Surgeon General warned us about something we’ve already known: parents are stressed. So what can employers do to help? Here are a few ideas. ➡️ Childcare solutions that fit your business, such as stipends, on-site childcare, childcare savings accounts, or access to backup childcare with pre-screened providers (check out more in the comments). ➡️ Free or discounted mental health services, wellness apps, and organizations that provide specialized support to parents, such as those with children with disabilities. ➡️ Leave policies supporting parents no matter the age of their children, including bereavement leave covering the loss of a pregnancy, medical leave for parents whose children face unexpected medical diagnoses, etc. Remember, there’s no one size fits all solution to supporting working parents. For example, some parents might have older children and thus might not need year-round childcare (if any at all), but having access to back-up childcare could help. Identify and weigh your options with an assets and opportunities assessment so that you know how to best support your working parents. Check out a few resources in the comments. #ListenToYourMothers #WorkingMothers #MentalHealthMatters