The Citrix Baby Brain Drain study has revealed that approximately 3,000 new mothers leave the workforce every year due to the cost of childcare. The study also shows that this loss of talent is costing Irish businesses over €68 million every year as firms are forced to recruit new staff and train them sufficiently so that there is no loss in productivity.
The Citrix Baby Brain Drain study, which was run in partnership with eumom, Ireland’s largest pregnancy and parenting website, surveyed expectant mothers or mothers of babies under one year of age to establish whether they planned to return to work after their maternity leave and the factors influencing their decision.
The research highlighted that working mothers expect Government to play a key role in tackling the issues, with almost half of those surveyed (49 percent) unhappy with measures introduced for mothers in the last budget.
Almost seven in ten of the survey participants would like to see legislation introduced which would see a tax break or subsidy for childcare.
46 percent of the expectant mothers and new mothers surveyed would like to see legislation introduced which would guarantee mothers the option of returning to work part time. Over four in ten mothers would also like to see some form of paid paternity leave introduced.
The study also highlighted that businesses could do more for working mothers, with 32 percent expressing that they would like to have the option of working remotely. This builds on previous research studies commissioned by Citrix which showed that 84 percent of working professional women believed that a flexible working policy was crucial to managing motherhood and a demanding job.