British mothers miss out on more than €80,000 in decade after giving birth

Research show derailed career paths, missed promotion opportunities, and tens of thousands of foregone earnings

The Social Market Foundation said the findings show the penalty inflicted by the high cost of child care with mothers unable to work as much as they want to. Picture: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg

Mothers in Britain lose out on almost £70,000 (€82,000) in wages in the 10 years after having a baby, according to new research.

In a report published Monday, the Social Market Foundation said a woman who had her first child in 2010-11 has on average suffered a total pay cut of £66,434 over the following nine years, compared to the amount she would have earned if she remained childless.

The SMF said the findings show the penalty inflicted by the high cost of child care with mothers unable to work as much as they want to. 

Poorer households pay an even higher share, while lower-paid women also see a bigger drop in their earnings after giving birth, the SMF said. 

“With child-care costs prohibitive, many either have to stop working, or work reduced hours, in order to look after children,” said Scott Corfe, SMF Research Director. 

“This means derailed career paths, missed promotion opportunities, and tens of thousands of pounds of foregone earnings over the course of a decade.” 

The headline figure is based on a typical career progression, which saw women aged 25-35 benefit from an earnings increase of around a third over the 2010s. In contrast, someone who became a mother at the start of the decade was earning 10% less.

Bloomberg