An Emotional Rollercoaster: The Untold Stories of Mothers Working in Male-Dominated Industries Returning Back to Work After Maternity Leave

The re-entry to work after maternity leave is one of the most challenging phases in women´s lives. Women working in male-dominated industries additionally face various difficulties when combining their career with childcare which are brought to the forefront during their re-entry. In this thesis we address mothers' re-entry experiences working in the financial services sector in Nordic countries, also shedding light on their individual emotions. By conducting episodic narrative interviews with ten mothers in high-performing roles centering on the phenomenon of their re-entry, we find that mothers experience clashing emotions such as love and freedom, but also stress, guilt and the feeling of not being good enough. While the flexibility at work and bonding with colleagues facilitates mothers' re-entry, the inequalities they face and the pressure to fulfill societal expectations result in challenges for them. Mothers also experience re-entry as a time in which support is crucial but not always ensured and a period in which they need to cope with identity changes. We draw on insights from organization and gender studies which have mainly looked at workplace arrangements assisting mothers in their re-entry transition (Constantini et al., 2022; Kanji, 2010) and women's situation in general working in male-dominated industries (Acker, 1990; Cha, 2013; Trethewey, 1999). With our findings we extend current research by focusing specifically on the time of re-entry to work after maternity leave and thus capturing nuanced experiences and emotions of mothers working in high-performing roles in a gendered setting. Our implications for future research are twofold: first, research could continue centering on the distinct and complex episode of the re-entry, and second, explore the topic of motherhood and emotions within the rather rational and competitive work environment of male-dominated fields.