How to treat a working mom

Women are the backbone of many organizations. But all women are not created equal. The woman I am talking about is committed to her job AND to her success as a mom. She wants to have it all. She wants to feel appreciated for the great work she does and she wants to make no compromises when it comes to her kids.

She is one of the most prepared for the staff meeting, she does unpaid overtime all the time after her kids are in bed (time that you have no idea about) and most important of all, she comes to work on a mission to make her kids proud; to bring home not just the money that the family needs, but the self-esteem that a job well done can provide her. She is one of your best employees and could likely do your job pretty darn well one day, when her kids are a little older.

polar bear mom with cubs — Photo by Alastair Rae

If you ever give her a hard time about needing a few more sick days than the average person, if you ever put her in the same category or say the same words to her that you say to the 22 year old party girl that has a hard time on Mondays, shame on you.

Great employees come in all shapes and sizes. This particular star employee takes a few more sick days and has a few more late mornings than some of your other stars, but she also brings a unique and balanced perspective to the workplace that your organization needs. Any organization still stuck in the old mindset that the best employees never need a sick day is going to find it increasingly difficult to operate as our workforce continues to diversify over the next 20 years.

They say it is dangerous to get between a mother bear and her cubs. Do you really want to go there?

IBEX Payroll extends our profound respect and immeasurable gratitude to all the ancestors and keepers of the land on whose traditional territories our work takes place. We acknowledge that we are on Treaty 1 territory, the traditional gathering place of the Anishinaabe, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dene people and the traditional homeland of the Métis people. This land is sacred, historical, and significant.

Every time we acknowledge this truth, we have an invitation and an opportunity to reflect on the wrongs of the past, what we do in the present, and what we can do to continually honour the people whose lands and water we benefit from today.

This statement only acts as a first step in honouring the land we reside on and its peoples, and must be paired with education, understanding and informed action.