Office Dynamics: The Pregnant Team Member

"Do you get pissed when your pregnant teammate isn’t working as hard as she usually does because she feels sick, and asks more of you? Do you think she’s making it up?" - Fishbowl Big Law, May 31, 2023.  

The American orthodoxy is to celebrate the continuum from conceiving a human life to the miracle of the birth of the baby and those milestones such as the first steps. 

But the reality is increasingly negative. In the office there seems to be less willngness to give a pass on the performance of women in the early months of pregnancy. That's usually a time of morning sickness and fatigue. Instead of pitching in to help, there often is resentment. Little reflection is given to the fact that without pregnancies the human race would not be able to continue. 

One strategy for giving the best shot for the human species to exist is to time pregnancies later in a career. That's what I advise in my coaching.  By that time the tasks have been mastered and the woman has some power. For instance, she can delegate, authorize more help be hired, and/or reward those do pitch in.

Meanwhile, as a society we should size up how we perceive and treat those with special physical conditions. We might recall how that went down during Hitler's time. In America, the hostility toward the pregnant team member could so easily extend to those with disabilities. Because of the ADA management has to accommodate those. But co-workers in some industries might decide they do not.

What is your career story? Or, what do you assume it is? That narrative may be ot-of-date and holding you back.

Take advantage of a complimentary consultation. Please contact intuitive career coach Jane Genova at janegenova374@gmail.com or text 203-468-8579.