COVID-19 cost a lot of Americans their jobs. And while things are slowly coming back to normal, employment as we know it has changed a lot in the past year. For one, a lot of people are taking to heart how their business or company handled the crisis. Secondly, a lot of people are realizing that by working remotely, they got a lot done in a shorter amount of time.
For those with kids, things were even more difficult. Many day cares weren't operating, and schools were shut down. And many are viewing child care a bit differently as well. Since many young kids currently aren't eligible for the vaccine, many parents feel uncomfortable bringing their kids back. For parents who are still out of work, that's yet another issue — day cares are expensive.
Maggie Mundwiller, a 38-year-old mom to son Mylo, was one of the many who had additional difficulties. She illustrated it in a very cute video on TikTok.
Maggie explains that she lost her job due to COVID-19 and has been actively searching for a new one. While scheduling an interview, her child care fell through. Luckily, the company had no trouble with Maggie bringing Mylo along. They told her, "We are child-friendly."
The video itself is adorable. Mylo has his own résumé and gets ready for the interview by washing the wheels of his stroller. He's even wearing a nice suit, showing he's taking the opportunity seriously. But despite how adorable the video is, it's a solid reminder of how many moms are struggling to balance both parenthood and their careers.
The fact that Maggie was so surprised by the company's policy was also eye-opening. She found a company that recognized that some of its employees may also be parents. If more companies were as open, moms wouldn't have to worry about whether or not their jobs were at stake due to an emergency back at home. Plus, working moms often carry a lot of guilt.
"I was so excited and inspired," Maggie said to Good Morning America. "How cool is that, that a company would be so welcoming? It's awesome to know that there are companies out there that are willing to work with parents and understand the struggles that parents are going through and just accommodate."
As Maggie told the outlet, she was at the very end of her maternity leave when she realized she wouldn't be brought back on board at work. This can be very challenging for new parents, based on child expenses. Since she worried about possibly bringing the virus home to Mylo, her job search became even more complicated.
"It's really disappointing because I've had to miss opportunities throughout COVID," said Maggie. "The doctor's recommendation was to keep him isolated, keep him at home. It was really just our family unit in our home so I didn't have any additional support to help with Mylo while my husband would go to work and I was at home to even do a Zoom interview."
Babies and toddlers can also be unpredictable. When you're home alone, it can be hard to know when they'll wake up — or whether or not they'll have a tantrum in the midst of a call. "I actually had to cancel two times with a company," Maggie admitted. "It was right around Mylo's nap time so I was hoping that it would work out and it just didn't."
Maggie isn't alone. Many women lost their jobs due to the virus. And many other women had to leave their careers due to the lack of safe child care options during that time. While the virus is currently getting under control thanks to the vaccine, many women are still trying to recover.
For the first time, many employers had to face the facts that their employees had lives outside of the office. "I have definitely felt like this in parts of my life where I feel like I have to put on a different face to walk into work," Maggie said. "But I've started coming to this realization that it's so much more important to be authentic and be my real self than trying to meet this idea of what it means to be a working woman."
If more jobs were as open as the place where Maggie had her interview, a lot of pressure would be off moms. They'd also have more money to afford reliable child care if need be. Moms already have an unpaid job they can't immediately switch off, so organizations that at the very least recognize that become ideal places to work.
"We've seen worldwide that we can be successful outside of a traditional workspace so it doesn't have to be so rigid. It doesn't have to be that clear-cut 9-to-5," Maggie said. "People should have room to work within the scope of their life in what works for them and works for the business, and pair together to see how they can make that work."
Maggie's approach in how she handled Mylo was phenomenal. It's hard not to laugh seeing a toddler walk into a building holding his own résumé. While it's obvious that the pair made a great impression, being mom-friendly likely inspired Maggie to go all out when it came to the interview. Because jobs like that are such a blessing to working moms.