Relaunching through The Returnship Model: A Study of Return to Work Programs

Corporate return to work programs and a series of interviews with relaunchers, women who return to work after significant time out, provide themes for analysis around work family conflict, the gendered division of labor, the motherhood penalty, the life course, and corporate citizenship. Highly educated women who opt out of high powered jobs to focus on family are now opting back in and this study considers the evolution of company policies and attitudes to attract and retain older, female, experienced workers.