With my 2nd baby I worked for a startup that required me to go to HQ once a month, for no reason other than to work in person & bond with the team.

I asked for a place to pump and it turned into a chaotic search around the open plan office. The building manager was called. I had to go to a diff floor occupied by a diff company, and pump in an equipment room on a step stool. There was a camera in there he just pointed away.

A great lesson in how not to be inclusive to working moms. The entire time I pumped on that stool I wondered wtf I was doing back to work. I didn’t belong there.

I’m pretty thankful I’ll be going back to work with my 3rd while working from home this time around. But just because we don’t need to be inclusive in physical spaces bc of COVID doesn’t mean there still isn’t work that can be done.

I didn’t know how to advocate for myself as a younger mom. In fact I tried to downplay what I needed coming back to work so not to seem different than before, less capable or needy.

I plan to do more advocating & speaking up for those working moms now. I’ll stick my neck out for them. To feel welcomed supported, & understood would have made coming back to work so much easier.

Bc the reality is, companies will think they’re actually being inclusive and supportive and continue to put “great work life balance” as a perk unless we tell them they’re falling short & how to fix it.

Being inclusive to moms isn’t just being willing to hire us & some maternity leave, (that would be nice) it’s creating an environment & culture we can return to & thrive in, like anyone else. That’s the price to pay, the real work to be done to get diverse perspectives and ideas.

*steps off soapbox*

Could go on and on all day about this.

I’ll leave you with this article. How can we undo the damage COVID is doing to working moms? 10 year setback. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/26/world/covid-women-childcare-equality.html