Study: Flexible Schedules Key to Retaining Working Mothers

A new study finds that flexible schedules outperform remote work in terms of retaining working mothers in full-time jobs.

Led by Jeanine Andreassi, a professor in the business department at Sacred Heart University, the research offers employers “new, data-driven guidance as organizations continue to rethink workplace flexibility while competing to recruit and retain talented employees,” according to a statement from the university.

Published in the peer-reviewed journal Administrative Sciences, the study surveyed 213 mothers who either remained in or left full-time jobs after the birth or adoption of a child. According to the researchers, they found schedule flexibility was “the single strongest workplace policy influencing whether mothers remain in full-time employment after the birth or adoption of a child.”

The Andreassi-led team compared six forms of workplace flexibility, finding that schedule flexibility, career flexibility and maternity leave were the strongest predictors of whether a mother stayed in full-time employment.

This result suggests that “giving working mothers greater control over when they work may be even more important than giving them flexibility over where they work,” Andreassi said in a statement.

According to the study authors, the findings also challenge “a widely held assumption that remote work is the most valuable flexibility benefit for working mothers. And, while noting that location flexibility has become increasingly common since the coronavirus pandemic that began in 2020, the researchers found it ranked near the bottom of retention predictors for working mothers.

The authors added that offering flexibility policies alone is not sufficient, adding that working mothers who both needed and used flexibility benefits were much more likely to remain employed full-time.

In a statement, Andreassi said these findings ultimately suggest that employers should think beyond offering flexible work arrangements, focusing their efforts on creating a work environment where employees feel comfortable taking advantage of such arrangements without fear of negative consequences.

“Simply offering flexibility policies isn’t enough,” Andreassi said. “When senior leaders visibly model and support work-life balance, working mothers are more likely to use the flexibility they need, and more likely to stay.”