An initiative developed in Brazil seeks to tackle the gender labour gap with a resumes’ database for mothers who want to go back into the labor market. Alexei Danichev, from Sputnik, had a talk with its creators.

In Brazil, Mother’s Day was coming and a group of communications firms were looking for a campaign idea for the date. “We are always studying trends and realized that we were very focused on mothers who work outside of their homes, so we suddenly started thinking about the other mothers”, Mateus Oazem, creative director of the innovation lab Gira, told Sputnik.

That is how project “Hire a mother” was born. It is a database of resumes for mothers who want to go back into the labour market. In only 10 days, the initiative exceeded expectations and received over 750 resumes. According to its creators, the platform works as a kind of LinkedIn, the labour social network. Though there are no guarantees of getting a job, there is the chance of companies that realize about the benefits of hiring women with children considering their resumes.

“The form that is attached to the resume provides the chance of mentioning skills acquired due to maternity, such as organization, handling people, social and emotional intelligence. Hiring a mother is a guarantee of having a very dedicated professional”, said Daniela Talamoni, content director of the agency TeamWorker and one of the heads of the program.

A video produced by the Federation of Large Families of the Basque Country shows the drama of maternity in resumes. Every now and then, the video, that shows a mother trying to go back to the labour market, becomes viral in social networks. “Being a mother is a plus” lasts almost four minutes and shows how a mother may contribute to a work team.

Talamoni is so fond of the project “Hire a mother” that she think it has become her second child. She is a journalist who went through the experience of being unemployed during a year, after choosing to dedicate full time to her kid for a while. The concern about going back into the market, having a “blank space” in her resume caused her a lot of stress, she remembers.

“The idea is for companies to see that that “blank space” may resemble far more important knowledge than the one you get from a MBA. There is a survey that shows that 80% of women will be mothers until they turn 44 years old. Therefore, this project is not only important for today’s mother, but also for women who are afraid that maternity may jeopardize their professional career”, points out Oazem.

To launch the campaign, the creators submerged themselves in the topic. They opened an investigation to compile studies, surveys and statistical data about gender inequality. They present creative arguments and solutions to companies in order to gain support and new job offers. Initially, the first jobs available where in more operational sectors. However, as the amount and diversity of resumes grew, the companies started to offer jobs in other sectors, such as the health and legal sectors.

“There were many companies that showed interest on the project, but they regretted not having an open recruitment process. We are explaining them that it is not just about having an immediate job available, but of knowing they can use the database whenever a job becomes available”, said Talamoni.

In addition, the journalist pointed out that, by supporting the initiative, the company is seen as an innovative brand that closely follows trends and that is against gender discrimination. “A survey showed that men tend to be more appreciated when they state in their resume that they are fathers, while women try to hide that information to prevent discrimination. It is important to take into account that men too can take days off to tend to their sick child”, she added.

According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), despite the efforts made during the past two decades to tackle gender inequality in the labour market, the gap prevails. In the report “Women at work – 2016 trends”. ILO said that “the remarkable progresses made by women in education have not led to a comparable improvement of their situation in the labour market”.

“In several regions of the world, women have more chances than men to become and stayed unemployed, they have less opportunity to participate in the workforce, and when they do, they are usually forced to accept lower quality jobs”, says the document.

 Source: Sputnik News