It's Going To Be A Bumpy Ride!

While you are celebrating the ‘good news’, your boss may be plotting to put a break in your rise in the organisation. Yes, this is a disturbing reality that most working women face the minute they announce that they are pregnant. BHG explores this regressive practice and looks for the best solution to tackle it head on.

- Rajashree Balaram

In June 2012, Marissa Mayer, then 37, quit her job as head of Google Maps, Location and Local Services to join Yahoo! as Chief Executive Officer. Marissa’s gigantic leap got the corporate circles gushing and skeptical in equal parts—one, because she was a woman, and two, because she had set a precedent of sorts as the first woman ever to take the top position while being pregnant.

In the months following her awe-inspiring move, scrutineers and press columns tried to gauge how having her first baby would impact Marissa’s performance and perception at the helm of one of the world’s largest technology corporations. Judging by her gumption, though, it was evident that Marissa was fully aware of every gaze fixed on her and she was prepared to face it squarely. So even though, legally, women don’t need to disclose a pregnancy and employers are not entitled to ask either, Marissa had chosen to share the news with a member of the Yahoo search committee early on in her job interview, her six-month baby bump proudly encased in her Armani and Caroline Herera separates.

Though her transparency is a testimony to her unflinching confidence in her ability and equity, her stride towards the summit may not have been as smooth without the inclusive and unbiased work policy of her employer. Let’s face it—Marissa is among a handful of women who have successfully vanquished the frothing beast of pregnancy bias.

KEEP MUM AND BEAR IT