What should the boss do when an employee becomes a mother? Positive behaviours of leaders and work engagement in Slovenian workers after maternity leave

Motherhood can be considered a developmental task of the individual, which often includes returning to the workplace when maternity leave ends. This is an event that can present a challenge for the mother, as this new life role often affects both her goals and identity. In our study that concerns an area that is still unexplored in Slovenia, we dealt with the research question of the relation­ship between the supervisor behaviour and the work engagement of the mother, paying special attention to the connection of both constructs with the working time. In addition to questionnaires on work engagement, supportive supervisor behaviours and demographic data, we also included an open question focused on the actions of the supervisors that the participants missed during their return-to-work experience. Our results indicate a moderately positive association between work engagement and positive behaviours of superiors and a low negative as­sociation of work commitment with working time, whereas the association with positive behaviours of superiors, proved to be unimportant. Based on the results, we have developed guidelines for human resource professionals, supervisors and mothers themselves, which can be valuable support in planning and implement­ing the process of re-entry to work. For further research, the role of other relation­ships, e.g. co-workers or a mother‘s partner, remains open. In addition, it would be important to adapt the questionnaire to different areas of work and for the population of workers who do not have a (permanent) supervisor.