In a recent post, we discussed an economic letter written for the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco (FRBSF) in which it argued that the gap between U.S. and Canadian policies and structures around support for women working while raising children is the primary contributor to a large gap between the labor participation rate for prime-age women, costing the United States up to 5 million prime-age workers.
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Getting Moms Back to Work
It seems the government isn’t alone in recognizing this gap. A private startup geared toward getting professional moms back into the workforce has just raised some big money to pursue that same goal.
“Chicago-based startup The Mom Project, a platform specifically built to help female knowledge workers find jobs after pausing to raise kids, has raised a little egg of its own,” says Ingrid Lunden, a contributor to Tech Crunch. She adds that The Mom Project has raised $8 million recently, which it plans to put toward bringing its job marketplace to additional cities. Currently, the project operates in Chicago, Atlanta, and San Francisco. It will also use the money to expand the types of services it offers.
“This brings the total raised by The Mom Project to $11 million, and with 75,000 registered moms and 1,000 companies, including Proctor & Gamble, BP, Miller Coors and AT&T, the startup claims it’s now the largest platform of its kind in the U.S.,” says Lunden.
In addition to training and coaching for potential employees from the mom ranks, The Mom Project is also focusing efforts on employers. This includes ongoing employer education efforts and discussions with HR professionals around the potential opportunities for their companies in hiring moms returning to the workforce.
What Can You Do?
Chances are you have moms, or potential moms, in your workplace. What steps might you be taking to ensure that they come back after a leave? The Mom Project can provide some insights and best-practice approaches to consider.
Particularly in a tight labor market, employers simply can’t afford to overlook a large pool of highly qualified employees. The Mom Project’s primary goal is to help connect employers with members of that pool, and its recent influx of cash should help it push that goal even further.