The iconic ‘Labour isn’t working’ advertising campaign has been recreated by pregnant women to bring to life the motherhood penalty.

The advert which was recreated by acclaimed portrait photographer Sane Seven, has been made to promote a report from women’s empowerment charity, The Female Lead and Peanut, the online community for motherhood.

The ‘From Labour Ward to Labour Force’ campaign is backed by new research showing that almost half (47%) of women who aren’t satisfied with the support from their employer will leave their job within a year and 35% feel their work set up is unsustainable.

The research is based on a survey of 8,000 women who have returned to work in the last five years after having or adopting a baby. It underlines that the point when mothers return to the workplace is a moment when employers can change the narrative.

Changing the narrative

When four out of five women will have a baby at some point in their lives, addressing the motherhood penalty is crucial. As one respondent to the research project explained: “The workforce is not made for working mothers. Oftentimes, it feels like we must choose between being a present parent (especially during the formative years) and performing at an exponential rate to excel in a male-dominated sector and propel our careers.”

The ‘From Labour Ward to Labour Force’ campaign is calling for businesses to focus on supporting new Mothers and help to change the narrative. The research found that in the UK, over half of women (52%) felt either unsatisfied or neutral about the support they received at work. Consequently, over 35% of returning mothers feel like their work set-up is unsustainable. Of those, a staggering 47% plan to leave their jobs in the next year.

Posters to support the campaign will appear on digital screens around the UK for a week from Monday 4th November, across locations including Westfield London and Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester.

The campaign features 47 women, who were photographed at the RHS Lindley Hall, London, in September. All were in their third trimester of pregnancy and kindly gave up their time to support the campaign.

Sane Seven, the photographer behind the image, said: “This campaign lays bare the irony: we celebrate new life, but not the lives of the women who create it. Through powerful images of expectant mothers, I wanted to ask—why are women still waiting for long-overdue changes? Reimagining the classic ‘Labour isn’t working’ as ‘From Labour Ward to Labour Force’ removes political connotations, highlighting the urgent need for workplaces to support mothers’ return.”

Edwina Dunn OBE, Founder of The Female Lead, added: “You rarely see such a large group of heavily pregnant women together. We want to make them visible, to tell employers what they want when they return to work, and why it boosts business profitability to support them. This isn’t a political attack advert like the original poster, but it does call on businesses to make a change: follow our solutions and reap the ‘motherhood reward’ rather than the ‘motherhood penalty.”

Closing the flexibility gap

The research lifts the lid on the most important kind of support that employers can offer retrying mothers. Flexibility around unexpected caring responsibilities such as a nursery closing or a sick child came out top. Closely followed by the offer of flexible hours.

Rory Sutherland, Author and Vice Chairman of Ogilvy Group, added: “This ad parodies one which is perfectly chosen for the age group of older managers who are perhaps most resistant to change. And it's timely in another way - since new, more flexible work practices present us with an opportunity to rethink the future of work. I don't know what the future of work may be, but a return to the status quo certainly isn't it.”

Assumptions are still the death of women’s careers post-motherhood the research reveals the third most wished-for request was for acknowledgement and communication. Underlining the uncomfortable truth that many women simply aren’t being asked what they need.

Lori Meakin, Founder and CEO of the Others and Me and an executive at Women in Advertising and Communications Leadership, said: “Reframing this iconic ad through a female lens is so powerful, because this is a commercial issue as well as a social one. If we all start to change the language of leadership, promote for potential and think flexible first, we can unlock the opportunity these women represent.”

The From Labour Ward to Labour Force report can be downloaded here.