Among the multitude of challenges that working mothers face, an oft-overlooked — yet incredibly transformative one — is the return to work following the birth of a child. Beyond the physical recovery from pregnancy and childbirth, postpartum mothers must navigate a significant psychological shift in identity, balancing their roles as both a dedicated employee and a caregiver. This period, dubbed by others as the ‘fifth trimester,’ can be fraught with anxiety, exhaustion and a sense of being pulled in multiple directions.
With limited access to paid federal leave in the U.S., many mothers return to work within just a few weeks of giving birth. This abrupt transition places immense pressure on their health and well-being, making it crucial for organizations and colleagues to provide meaningful support. Whether it’s helping a postpartum mother understand HR policies, ensuring she has time to pump, recognizing her contributions, or simply checking in on her well-being, small actions can have profound impacts.
We interviewed and surveyed mothers about their postpartum transition back to work, and our research highlights that coworkers, colleagues and supervisors can be postpartum allies, ensuring the retention of working mothers and improving their well-being in four key ways.
One of the most immediate stressors for new mothers returning to work is understanding and leveraging available workplace policies. Many mothers are unaware of their full rights and options regarding leave extensions, lactation accommodations and flexible schedules. Supportive colleagues and managers can help co-navigate these policies, ensuring that new mothers are not only aware of their benefits, but also feel empowered to advocate for their needs. This form of allyship can also reduce stress and foster a more equitable work environment where new mothers do not bear the burden of policy navigation alone.
Postpartum mothers need both physical and temporal accommodations to manage their new responsibilities. Workplace environments that provide well-equipped lactation rooms, structured breaks for pumping and flexible scheduling options (e.g., adaptable work hours; being able to bring the baby to work) enable mothers to transition back to work in a way that fosters effective balancing of work and motherhood responsibilities. Further, developing a culture where utilizing these resources is normalized — not stigmatized — can go a long way in ensuring mothers feel holistically supported.
One of the most problematic beliefs that postpartum mothers contend with is the perception that their professional value has diminished. Employers and colleagues can counteract this by recognizing their contributions and helping them continue to fulfill their career aspirations. Celebrating their return, expressing confidence in their abilities and assigning meaningful and developmental projects can help combat feelings of self-doubt while also reassuring mothers that they are still valuable — and essential — members of the workforce.
While professional validation is critical, acknowledging a mother’s new identity is equally important. Simple gestures like asking about her child, listening with empathy to her new challenges, or sharing stories of similar (parental) experiences can provide much-needed emotional support. By fostering an environment where motherhood is valued and respected rather than seen as a hindrance, workplaces can alleviate some of the guilt that mothers often experience when balancing work and family life.
What This Means for Working Well
The impact of these allyship behaviors extends beyond the workplace. Our studies show that when postpartum mothers feel supported, they experience greater confidence in balancing work and family life, reduced feelings of guilt, and even lowered postpartum depressive symptoms. And, critically, postpartum allyship is not limited to supervisors or human resources policies — it is a collective effort that can be championed by colleagues at all levels.
By prioritizing the well-being of new mothers, colleagues, supervisors and organizations can play a critical role in reshaping the reentry process from one that is filled with dread, anxiety and stress to one that centers the postpartum mother’s needs and is fully focused on ensuring that she is able to thrive across both her work and motherhood identities. In so doing, businesses can not only retain valuable talent, but also create a more compassionate and supportive work culture for all employees.
Nitya Chawla is an Assistant Professor of Work and Organizations at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management.
Full Citation
Chawla, N., Gabriel, A. S., Prengler, M. K., Rogers, K. M., Rogers, B., Tedder-King, A., & Rosen, C. C. (2024). Allyship in the fifth trimester: A multi-method investigation of women’s postpartum return to work. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 182, 104330.
