When women take a career break to provide care for others, returning to the workforce is rarely straightforward. It is a complex transition that involves a series of personal and family decisions.
One reason women remain underrepresented in leadership positions may be the interruptions in their professional careers, which are often associated with motherhood or caring for vulnerable family members. According to the Decent Work study conducted by the Center for Research on Women in Senior Management, the employment-to-population ratio for women increased from 38% in 2005 to 44% in 2025. However, this figure could rise more quickly if companies made it easier for women to reenter the workforce after extended caregiving breaks.
When a woman steps away from her career to provide care, returning to work becomes a multifaceted process. Many women face concerns related to family responsibilities, including meeting the care needs of family members, the emotional and financial costs of delegating those responsibilities, managing their time, and navigating the expectations of their partners or extended families. Professionally, they may worry about staying current with technical knowledge, reintegrating into a work team, or competing against candidates with more recent experience.
At the same time, women’s motivations for returning to work vary. Some seek to improve their family’s financial situation, while others want to pursue careers aligned with their interests or reconnect with the intellectual challenges that their professions once provided. Research conducted by Gupta and colleagues (2025), based on interviews with 38 professional women who took career breaks ranging from two to twelve years to personally raise their children, sheds light on these experiences.
From the outset, the job search proved challenging. Many participants were unsure whether they should apply for entry-level management positions, similar to where they began their careers, or seek director-level roles, where they had left off before taking their career break. Most said they felt disconnected from the professional world because their industries had evolved significantly, leading them to believe that their technical knowledge had become outdated—even though they still considered their professional capabilities to be intact.
Their confidence also suffered. Several participants questioned whether their previous responsibilities and accomplishments were still relevant enough to include on their résumés.
Another challenge they identified was the widespread expectation of uninterrupted career progression. Continuous employment is often viewed as a prerequisite for professional success. Recruitment processes tend to favor candidates with uninterrupted work histories while overlooking transferable skills developed outside formal employment, such as volunteer work, consulting projects, or independent initiatives. Many women also found that opportunities for senior-level positions disappeared once they requested flexible schedules to balance work and family responsibilities. As a result, many accepted lower salaries or positions with responsibilities well below their qualifications, decisions that often had long-term negative effects on their careers.
Finally, the study highlights what researchers describe as the age paradox. Women with extensive professional experience who have also taken career breaks are frequently overlooked for both entry-level and senior positions. Employers may see them as overqualified for junior roles yet insufficiently up to date for executive positions. This combination leaves many women caught in a professional limbo that makes reentering the workforce especially difficult. In these situations, professional networks often become invaluable. Former colleagues, mentors, and even family members frequently play a critical role in helping women overcome these barriers.
Reentering the workforce is undeniably challenging, but the benefits—for women, businesses, and society as a whole—are substantial. Achieving successful reintegration requires the commitment of employers, working alongside educational institutions that provide training opportunities at different levels and in various formats. It also depends on women’s willingness to continue investing in their own professional development by strengthening their skills and competencies, even during periods when they are not formally employed.
Originally published in Forbes: https://forbes.com.mx/las-mujeres-y-su-reinsercion-en-el-mercado-laboral/
Yvette Mucharraz y Cano and Karla Cuilty Esquivel
