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Maternity leave program aims to close power, salary gaps for working mothers

A unique Canadian maternity leave program launched Oct. 18, working directly with organizations and women to close the power and salary gap realized by working mothers.

Thousands of Canadian women take maternity leave every year and a February survey by Maturn showed less than one per cent of 130 respondents  feeling confident returning to work. Canada’s gender pay gap with starting salaries for mothers is on average 12 per cent lower compared to non-mothers.

As a founding partner, SAP Canada employees entering maternity leave will now be offered Maturn’s multi-faceted program covering each step of the maternity journey from preparing for maternity leave, child-care planning, and postpartum challenges, to planning for the crucial transition back to work.

“I have experienced two maternity leaves at SAP while navigating my career,” said Megan Smith, vice-president of HR, SAP Canada, in a news release.

“This program is the right thing to do, not just for mothers, but also for SAP’s overall success as a company. We win as an organization when we support mothers experiencing this major life change during their career. Until now, this journey has primarily been expected for mothers to figure out on their own, and our founding partnership on this first-of-its-kind offering in Canada, is going to change that. I firmly believe we are starting a movement for other companies to follow.”

Information on how individuals and organizations can join Maturn is available at www.maturn.com.