the pharmaceutical, health care, and financial services industries to the automotive, utilities, and food and beverage industries. Over half of the states were represented by a “best” company.
The Working Mother company application consisted of 500 questions in seven main areas: workforce profile, benefits, women’s issues and advancement, child care, flexible work, parental leave and company culture. The goal of the project was to recognize companies that help employees to successfully balance work with their home life.
At first glance, a person may think that things are looking good for the working mother. But what if you are a mother working for a company not in the top 100? How do these 100 best companies compare with other companies in the U.S.?
100 Best Companies Compared to Companies Nationwide
- Flextime is offered by 100% of the Best vs. 55% nationwide
- Child-care resource and referral services are offered by 96% of the Best vs. 18% nationwide
- Compressed work weeks are offered by 94% of the Best vs. 31% nationwide
- Job-sharing is offered by 93% of the Best vs. 22% nationwide
- Sponsor sick-child care is offered by 47% of the Best vs. 7% nationwide
- Before/after school care is offered by 44% of the Best vs. 4% nationwide
Note, these national numbers were based on the Society for Human Resource Management’s 2003 Benefits Survey.
As we can see, the picture changes quite drastically for the mother working for a company not considered the “best.” And what about the working mother of children with special needs? What does she experience?
Working Mothers of Children with Autism
Results were recently released from a new study of 326 families in Washington and Oregon conducted by researchers at Washington State University Vancouver. The overall findings revealed that working mothers of children with autism pay a high price in the workforce. Here are some examples.
- Over half of the women found themselves working fewer hours in order to care for the needs of their child.
- A surprising 3 out 5 had not taken jobs due to the demands of their child with special needs.
- One-fourth had taken a leave of absence to care for their child.
- Almost 25% had turned down a promotion due to the demands of their child.
- Almost 60% of the women had experienced financial difficulties in the past year.
Mothers of autistic children have increased demands due to experiencing more doctor visits for their child, conflicts at daycare, and more meetings at school to address their child’s needs. Many of these mothers have not found their employers to be willing to accommodate their scheduling needs, resulting in additional stress.
One Mother’s Working Experience
Recently I met “Nina,” a 34-year old married mother residing in Arkansas. She lives with her husband, teenage daughter, and two sons ages six and four, both of whom have autism. To make matters more complicated, Nina lives with both fibromyalgia and thyroid problems.
Although both of Nina’s sons have been diagnosed on the autism spectrum, she states,
They are as different from each other as any two children can be. My older son is the more driven and intense child, while my younger son is a little more laid back and easy to deal with. They are both prone to tantrums (not all the time, though), but they are really extremely intelligent and loving boys. As they learn and have access to speech and occupational therapies and the excellent resources in our area, they have just been blooming. I love to see the pleasure on their faces when they accomplish something new. We are very proud of them, and we have a large, loving family that is so supportive.”
In addition to her two sons, Nina has a highly involved husband. She also has a thirteen-year-old daughter who is a “very loving help to her brothers.” Nina acknowledges that she is very fortunate to have this strong family unit.
Nina’s mother-in-law helped with child care as Nina worked, but her mother-in-law’s health prevented her from continuing to provide the support. At the time of this interview, Nina was currently not working, “which is a hard hit on our household.” She said that there were other family members who help when they can, “but we all have our own lives.” Nina handles all the child care issues outside of school: after school hours and on the weekends.
Both the boys’ preschool and public school systems handle the boys’ therapies. But in addition to the appointments that parents of typical children must meet, Nina finds that she has a few more. She travels for three hours to see the specialist team who takes care of her boys. These appointments can occur one to two times per year per child. The appointments are usually early, so Nina travels the night before and gets a hotel room “to make it easier on all of us.” Nina went on to say, “Plus, our vehicles are not new, so we have the usual car issues.”
Nina’s Employment Status
Nina was working for a chain discount retailer owned by one of the world’s largest corporations. Unfortunately, she is currently unemployed, because her employer could not accommodate her schedule. Nina is college educated with Bachelor’s degree and worked as a sales associate. She was employed for only two months, scrambling for childcare until she had to quit. During the two months she worked anywhere from 25 to 35 hours per week, generally during the evening when her husband also had to work.
Although Nina’s employer is one the world’s largest corporations, how do they compare to the 100 Best? Per Nina, she reports that her previous employer offered:
- No flextime;
- No child-care resource and referral services;
- No compressed work weeks;
- No job-sharing;
- No sick-child care; and
- No before/after school care.
During Nina’s work history, she has found herself having to go into work late, leaving work early, and taking time off during the day to care for her children with autism. Similar to the study conducted by the researchers at Washington State University Vancouver, Nina has also taken a leave of absence, reduced her work hours, and taken a less demanding job in order to attend to her children with autism.
A Mother’s Biggest Work-Related Problem
Nina reports that her biggest problem with regards to working and caring for her children is centered on child care. Periodically, she also needs time off due to her children’s special needs. She is searching for a new job, and is hoping to 
find an employer who can be flexible with scheduling her hours and “understanding that my kids are not like everyone else’s.” Nina can not afford to pay a sitter on a regular basis, so her employer working around child care is key.
Nina’s income is critical to her family’s day-to-day existence, but she is fortunate that her spouse is able to provide their health benefits. She ended the interview by stating,
My last employer was not an unreasonable place. However, there was no accommodation for the parents of children with special needs. If they want me to work those hours, they need to understand my situation. They did not care.”
Conclusion
The 100 Best companies offer many flexible benefits to accommodate parents. As working mothers still tend to retain the bulk of the childcare, these flexibilities are especially needed and appreciated by mothers of children with special needs. When these Best companies are compared with companies nationwide, the offered benefits drastically decline. Much of this can be understood since six out of ten U.S. companies are small with fewer than 20 employees. Smaller companies many not be able to accommodate the same flexibility as larger companies. (Data from U.S. Census Bureau, 2004.)
But what about Nina—an average working mother of children with autism? Her previous employer would definitely fall into a larger company category. Should larger companies be held to a different standard? If not, what will become of the working mothers of children with special needs? More than this, what will become of the children with special needs if their mothers can not find employment and contribute to their families’ income?
There’s certainly no easy answer. But mothers like Nina have a lot to contribute to employers. If employers could offer a bit more flexibility, they may develop very committed and hardworking employees. What have your experiences been? What do you need from an employer? Please provide your thoughts and help us all understand this situation a bit better.
