It should be noted that it has always been difficult for women to get back to work after maternity leave. In addition, employers do not willingly hire people who have resume gaps. This rule is not applicable to women after maternity leave solely but also to women who had a long absence because of family or other issues. The purpose of this paper is to review the article written by Bates (2017) that dwells upon this problem faced by many female workers.
Summary
On the example of Jenna Bloomgarden, the author wanted to display how difficult it can be for women to gain a spot in a company in accordance with their actual skills. The woman has been taking care of her children and family for 13 years, and she decided to return to work despite having such a big resume gap. She tried all the possible ways of contacting employers, but none of these attempts has been successful. However, she has heard about Après agency, which helps women transition successfully from taking care of the family to work (Bates, 2017). Jenna Bloomgarden had an internship in one of the companies and was offered a job there, which responded to her needs, wishes, and skills. Nonetheless, if it were not for this agency, it is highly unlikely that she could find this place by herself. Therefore, the purpose of Après is to connect employers with workers, prepare women after gap years, and ensure their gradual plunging in duties.
There are other organizations, which work in a similar way such as reacHIRE, iRelaunch, and so on. Their main target is to provide return-to-work services for women to help them adjust to the current business setting while connecting employers with the workforce. Importantly, such agencies stress the potential that women have despite their resume gaps. According to the author, women need to get assistance in refining their skills, but their core competencies remain the same even after a long break (Bates, 2017). In addition, many companies have started hiring women intensely since they can contribute greatly to the organizational development. Return-to-work agencies review each case individually and connect employers with the applicants that fit the company the best and the essential skills are refined during internship, which allows women to adapt to the setting quickly but gradually.
Implications and Conclusions
It should be noted that appreciation of the potential contribution that women can make implies the encouragement of diverse workforce. It means that managers need to know the strategies, which will allow women to adapt to the new place and display their core competencies. It requires that company leadership comprehends the need for effective diversity management and employs approaches aimed at creation of environment inclusive of all employees with their various backgrounds. Overall, return-to-work services are useful and effective since they promote greater diversity at workplace and connect women with the eligible employers so that both of them could benefit from this cooperation.
Reference
Bates, S. (2017). Employers are seeking women returning from career breaks. Web.