Striking a work-life balance is causing stress and anxiety for three quarters (75%) of working parents, a study has found.
CIPHR’s survey of 1,400 working parents found this proportion rose to 77% for working parents with two children.
A third of working parents said the most significant difficulties in trying to strike the perfect work-life balance were children’s sickness and school holidays.
The poll also found more than half (53%) of respondents said they felt judged by their colleagues or bosses, with this proportion rising to 59% of parents with two children.
A further two-thirds (66%) said they felt that senior colleagues with greater childcare resources are sometimes less understanding about flexible working and parenting issues.
Nearly half (49%) were concerned that being a working parent was hindering their career prospects. Just over half (55%) of respondents said they had a flexible working agreement in place with their employer.
However, CIPHR said there is more that can be done to ensure it does not create any kind of judgement or stigma.
“With more parents working than ever before, it’s absolutely vital that workplaces create a culture in which these valuable members of the team feel less stressed, anxious and judged,” it added.