Transition to motherhood experiences of women working in the private sector: Pregnancy, maternity leave and return to work

This thesis aims to elucidate the experiences of women working in the private sector during the periods of pregnancy, maternity leave and return to work, and to determine the extent to which these experiences are shaped by organisational and individual factors. In order to address this objective, the research sought to answer the following question: What are the experiences of women during and after pregnancy, what changes occur in their work attitudes, and how are these changes affected by organisational and personal factors? Phenomenological approach was used in this qualitative research. The subjects of the research were selected through the application of two sampling techniques: similar case sampling and purposive sampling. To this end, three interviews were conducted with a total of 16 participants working in the private sector during pregnancy, maternity leave and return to work. The interviews were based on open-ended questions derived from the relevant literature. The data were transcribed and analysed using the MAXQDA Plus 2022 software package. The inductive thematic analysis technique was employed. The findings related to the pregnancy period were grouped under five main themes: sector inequalities, announcement of pregnancy, stigmatisation, awareness of legal rights and factors affecting the decision to return to work. The findings related to the maternity leave period were grouped under four main themes: new mother dilemma, communication with the workplace during maternity leave, leaves from mothers' perspective and working style and thoughts on working conditions. Ultimately, the findings pertaining to the process of returning to work were organised into three principal themes: transition to being a working mother, factors that facilitate and complicate adaptation to work, expectations and suggestions of mothers. The research findings indicated that the experiences gained from the companies they worked for and their private lives had an impact on women's work attitudes in the process of getting used to their new identities as both employees and mothers.