Balancing work and family is a natural part of everyday life
We have gathered supporting content for combining work and family - which is not always so easy. Select the option below that best describes your life situation. You will also find a list of useful links below for further information on other organizations’ pages.
We want to build a work life where everyone can balance career and family. Read more about our advocacy work for a family-friendly work life.
Returning to work from parental leave (Työterveyslaitos)
From working life to family leave and back – Family leave guide for employers by the Uusimaa ELY Centre’s 'From family leave to work' project.
Useful links:
Parental allowances (Kela)
Work and Family (Väestöliitto)
Good question/ Hyvä kysymys (Väestöliitto)
- a lot of useful articles, links and videos
Pregnant mom
Congratulations future MiB-mom and MiB-baby!
Congratulations! Whether you’re pregnant or expecting through adoption or similar circumstances, MiB is happy for you!
Expecting mother’s working rights Top3
Looking for work while expecting: You can still apply for work even if you’re aware of your pregnancy. A recruiter worth their salt knows the perfect match will be worth the wait. Legally you’re not obligated to reveal your pregnancy at any point of the recruitment process. Applicants have a right to refuse answering questions about their plans concerning having children.
Renewing contracts: Your work should continue as it were during your pregnancy as well as after your family leave. Discrimination and dismissal of employees during pregnancy and family leave is illegal. Limiting the duration of temporary positions until the beginning of family leave is also illegal, and temporary contracts must be renewed to continue after family leave ends.
Treatment at the workplace: Having children is a natural part of life, not an aberration from normalcy. Employees should never have to feel guilty about it, and everyone should congratulated for the happy news. There’s no excuse for malicious jokes or dismissals. Employees are only obligated to announce their pregnancy two months prior to starting family leave.
Motherhood makes you a working hero
Are you worried about mommyhood; the sleepless nights, brain fog and forgetting even your own name? As it turns out, mothers are usually exceptionally competent and motivated workers, and typically over perform in organization and predictive planning.
Preparing for family leave
Family leave can also be approached as an opportunity for professional re-evaluation. What direction do you want to go next? The first weeks you’ll be in a baby bubble, and that’s fine; you may have a lot of purchases to be made for the baby, you’ll find yourself nesting, and the crib won’t assemble itself. Maybe you’re thinking about shared hobbies and networks for you and your baby, and what kind of mother you’ll be. Whichever way you go, you’ll have made the right choice because they’re a part of you.
Work during family leave?
Did you know that you can also work during family leave?
You can join us any time, diverse future mothers!
Mothers in Business provides much needed variety during family leave. You’ll stay up to date in professional issues and have a chance to network with mothers sharing your situation. And what’s best, you can bring your kids with you, and in live events they can mingle with other MiB children.
MiB welcomes all regardless of vocation, field, education and number of children. You can also join during your pregnancy.
During family leave you can also gather experience through becoming a MiB volunteer or active as we call our volunteers. Volunteering gives you an opportunity to work according to your own schedule in a way that will benefit you in the future. Our active volunteers organize nearly all MiB events, from planning to arranging speakers. Maintaining the members registrations, networking with companies and media relations are also volunteer driven. Read more about volunteering at MiB.
Mom on family leave
Congratulations, you are a mom!
You may be home with your first child or perhaps you already have many kids. Even though your child or children are the most important thing in your life right now, but whether you’re a first-time mom, or a mother of several, it’s also natural to want to use your family leave to improve yourself.
Mothers in Business was originally launched by mothers on family leave, who realized there were no activities geared toward mothers and their ideas. There’s music clubs and baby swimming classes and a myriad of other activities for children and their wellbeing, but no place for career driven mothers to congregate. And this is also how Mothers in Business was founded, to help moms maintain their professional skills during parental leave and to enrich their everyday life.
Family leave can also be approached as an opportunity for professional re-evaluation. What direction do you want to go next? The first weeks you’ll be in a baby bubble, and that’s fine; you may have a lot of purchases to be made for the baby, you’ll find yourself nesting, and the crib won’t assemble itself. Maybe you’re thinking about shared hobbies and networks for you and your baby, and what kind of mother you’ll be. Whichever way you go, you’ll have made the right choice because it’s yours.
Why would Mothers in Business be a good option for you?
As our member you get access to our events, influence in society and engage with other MiB-mothers. Mothers in Business provides much needed variety during family leave. You’ll stay up to date in professional issues and have a chance to network with mothers sharing your situation. And what’s best, you can bring your kids with you, so no need for babysitters!
During family leave you can also gather experience through becoming a MiB volunteer. Volunteering gives you an opportunity to work according to your own schedule in a way that will benefit you in the future.
Everyday life with a family
Your everyday life has changed. You have a new important person in your life and more responsibility than before. Below we’ve gathered some tips we hope can help you manage your daily chores and tasks. You have less time for yourself and sometimes you may feel tired. Now is the time to pay attention to coping in your everyday life. Below we have gathered some tips to help you during this time!
Enjoy. Your child is small now, and now is the time you can dedicate to your baby.
Share responsibility. A child with two parents also has two caretakers. If you’re a single mother, don’t shy away from asking help from your support network, or inquire about assistance at a maternity and child health clinic.
Be merciful towards yourself. Everything doesn’t need to be perfect, and the world doesn’t end simply because of dust bunnies on the floor or stains on your child’s shirt.
Plan ahead. Make your tasks easier by planning ahead. Buy the whole week’s groceries in one go, choose clothes for the next day in the evening, and so on.
Believe in yourself. Motherhood will enrich your life in multiple ways, some of which will also be useful in your career. You can achieve everything you want, both career and a family.
Take care of yourself. Although most of your attention is focused on work and family matters, also remember to care for yourself. Do you eat properly, do you have time of your own?
Don’t forget about you. Although motherhood may seem to take over your thoughts, remember that you have the right to think about other things as well. You can dream about and talk about also things that are not related to your baby.
Peer support. It’s important to share experiences with people in a similar situation, they will genuinely understand your circumstances. MiB provides a perfect opportunity.
Motherhood makes you a hero of working life
There is no need to fear that parenting will negatively affect your ability to work - it won’t! It’s natural for motherhood to take over your thoughts, especially right after a child is born - it’s the famous baby bubble.
You may seem to have forgotten everything else. But believe it or not, when the bubble finally bursts, you will find that everything is safe, including your skills. You are still yourself, but you have certainly changed in some way.
You no longer want to waste time on unnecessary things, because you now have even more important things in your life. You know that your working hours are limited, which makes you a super-efficient employee without even noticing. You get a lot more done in less time.
No more overtime just because you don’t stick to schedules.
Back to work from family leave
Enjoy the time with your child before you think about returning to work from family leave. The job is waiting for you, and everything has been taken care of there during your leave. When it is finally time to start preparing to return to work again, we have gathered a lot of tips for you to make your return easy and easy. Leaving a child in care is a big change in family life! Remember that a child enjoys being with other little ones and it can be good for you too to get to do something without children for a long time? In this case - work.
In between jobs?
Not everyone has a job to return to after taking family leave. And some of us might not have any sense of what we’d like to do after the end of family leave. That's totally OK! Indeed, family leave is often a time when a mother begins to reflect on her own life and what she really wants to do. Motherhood has been able to turn your world of values on its head and now you are looking at things from a completely different perspective. Some realize that they no longer want to continue in the same job as before and are starting to really think about their dreams. Others begin to pursue entrepreneurship and while others seek a new job in an area of interest.
Congratulations, you've got a new job!
Your search has paid off and you have finally found an interesting new job. Now you just have to trust yourself and go boldly towards new challenges! It’s normal to feel feelings of insecurity at first, but remember; family time has not done anything to your skills! Your competencies are still there, and motherhood only enhances you as an employee. Be proud of your skills. Kehittyminen is important, however, is always accompanied by the MIB and keep to it that you can shine uudessta your work! Remember to be a family-friendly co-worker and encourage your work culture in a family-friendly direction? Be understanding of the situation of family co-workers and feel free to tell your supervisor about your hopes for reconciling work and family.
Working mom
Hey working mom! You rock!
Your life is a constant juggling act, coping with career and family. These busy years are often seen as something negative – but they shouldn’t be. You’re now living the best years of your life and can achieve anything you desire. Of course, there are times when you’re short on time and your energy levels leave a lot to be desired but remember, we can get through anything together!
Why join Mothers in Business?
As a member you will get to attend our instructive events and to network with other amazing mothers as well as participate in influencing society.
At MiB you can connect with mothers in a similar life situation as yourself. They, too, have to wake up early to take their kids to daycare and ponder how to manage their careers and family lives as efficiently as possible. At MiB you can seek out easily accessible peer support by chatting in our private Facebook group or participating in our casual mingling events. Wellbeing, networking and professional development of working mothers often act as main themes at our events.
Finding balance in your busy everyday life
There’s a lot going on in your everyday life. Trust us, we know. We’ve gathered some blog posts and general tips for you which we hope will assist you in making your everyday life run smoother.
1. Enjoy. Although there is a lot going on, take a moment every once in a while to appreciate your life and everything you have – a family and a job. These are the moments that will be your child’s only memories of their childhood, so make the most of them.
2. Share responsibility. Two parents make two caretakers. If you’re a single parent, don’t hesitate to ask for help from your support network or contact the Maternity and Child health clinic for advice on where to get help.
3. Cut yourself some slack. Not everything needs to be perfect. The world will keep on turning despite your child’s dirty shirt or the dust bunnies on the floor.
4. Well planned is half done. Make your everyday life easier by planning ahead – buy larger amounts of groceries at once, pick out outfits the night before, etc.
5. Believe in yourself. Motherhood brings countless great things into your life, and many of them can benefit your career as well. You can achieve anything you want – both a career and a family.
6. Take care of yourself. Although family and work matters take a great deal of your attention, spare some for yourself. Are you eating well? Are you getting any “me” time?
7. Don’t forget about yourself. Constant rushing can make you exhausted and feel like your real personality is fading into the background which can make it difficult to put your best foot forward. Stop for a second, even if you need to force yourself to. Dare to dream about things that are important to you and appreciate yourself.
8. Peer support. It’s important to share your experiences with others in the same situation – they are the ones that will truly understand you. MiB is the perfect platform for this!
Motherhood has made you a working life hero
It’s a myth that motherhood negatively impacts working capacity, fatherhood definitely doesn’t! On the contrary, your child has helped you mature and whole set of new skills that can end up being useful at work as well. Motherhood has taught you prioritizing, planning, managing challenging situations, understanding families as customers, and being more patient… What would you add to the list?
You no longer want to waste time on frivolities, you have more important things in your life. In fact, being aware of your limited working hours makes you a supremely efficient worker without even noticing it.
No more overtime because of you’ve been unable to keep up with your timetables.
Developing yourself in working life
Learn new things! Work evolves and new trends emerge constantly. We make sure that you stay on top of current phenomena. We constantly monitor new themes related to working life and arrange events that aim at your professional development.
Network! We swear by networking! Not one for formal conversations at stiff events and feeling uncomfortable in high heels? At our events networking is fun and you can make long-lasting friends. Some have even formed business partnerships through MiB. Indeed, the best lessons are learned by having a-ha moments together. Furthermore, the best opportunities often come through networks.
As our member, in addition to attending events, you’ll also get access to recordings of our versatile events.
Looking for a new job?
Has your current job made you second-guess? Are you up for new challenges? That’s totally OK! You don’t need to commit to a single job or even to an industry for the remainder of your career. There are many generalists at MiB and they are a great asset! Motherhood might have changed your fundamental values and altered your perspective. Perhaps your current job no longer represents the things you value and you might find yourself re-evaluating your dreams. Could entrepreneurship be your calling after all? How about your childhood dream job? We’ve gathered some tips for those of you who are looking for a change.
Congratulations, you've landed a new job!
Your efforts have paid off and you’ve finally found a new, interesting position. Now you’ll need to trust yourself and take on the new challenge with courage! It pays to be active right from the start and to get to know your colleagues. You have the opportunity to start with a clean slate and create the working life you’ve always dreamed of – and one you truly enjoy.
Starting at a new workplace gives you an opportunity to shape the organizational culture to be more family friendly, so don’t hide your motherhood – instead, embrace it! And remember to also be a family-friendly colleague yourself and acknowledge the varying situations of your colleagues with families.
Finally, don’t be afraid to bring up your wish to combine family and working life with your manager. This way your new job will get off to a flying start!
