Barclays – Winner 2019, Best for Mothers

3 Key Points

• Enhanced maternity pay from ‘day one’.
• Support for employees undergoing fertility treatment and those experiencing postnatal depression or perinatal mental health issues.
• Access to flexible working and the ability to change flexible patterns as family demands change.

“As a result of this job share opportunity, I’ve been able to raise my young family and continue to progress my career in Barclays. In fact, my colleague and I successfully moved to a new director role, which is providing us with new challenges and opportunities.”

Krista Doucette, Director, Head of Portfolio Insights

Summary

Offering enhanced maternity pay available from ‘day one’, support for employees undergoing fertility treatment, mandatory training for managers, a Parenting Portal, coaching and flexible working mean 90 per cent of mothers return after having their baby.

Barclays aims to support mothers throughout their parenting journey. This can begin by supporting employees undergoing fertility treatment, by allowing them time off for appointments.

Expectant mothers are eligible for enhanced maternity pay from ‘day one’ and they are invited to take part in pre and post maternity or adoption leave workshops, to help them find practical solutions for integrating work and family life.

A Parenting Portal provides parents and their line managers with online support material and tools including bite-sized coaching sessions for managing busy schedules. Mothers can also join the company’s Working Families Employee Network for peer-to-peer support and information.

Line managers undergo mandatory training on managing pregnancy, maternity leave and returning to work when the need arises, while training in managing employees who work flexibly is standard.

Mothers are able to discuss and amend flexible working arrangements as the demands of their family change. Almost two thirds (63%) of employees say they work flexibly, with almost equal numbers of men and women taking advantage of the bank’s ‘dynamic’ way of working. A total of 84 per cent of employees say they feel able to have a positive conversation with their line manager about working dynamically.

Expectant and new mothers are encouraged to talk to their line manager if they are experiencing any mental health issues, such as postnatal depression, to see if working arrangements can be amended to help them.

As a result of the on-going support, 90 per cent of women return to work after maternity leave and 83 per cent are still in post a year later.