Invisible Workload & Back To School

As the back-to-school season kicks off, many working mothers find themselves managing more than just their professional duties—they're juggling an invisible workload that quietly takes a toll on their mental, emotional, and physical well-being. This unseen labor, often overlooked but ever-present, can weigh heavily on women's careers and personal lives.

The invisible workload encompasses the mental and emotional labor involved in keeping a household running smoothly. It's all those little (and not-so-little) things that often fall under the radar:

- Scheduling doctor’s appointments and parent-teacher meetings

- Keeping track of school deadlines, extracurriculars, and special events

- Planning meals, managing grocery lists, and ensuring the pantry is stocked

- Coordinating childcare and transportation

- Keeping family connections and social calendars intact

While each task might seem small on its own, together, they amount to a mountain of unpaid labor that tends to land squarely on the shoulders of women.

When school starts, this invisible workload becomes even heavier. Working moms often have to:

- Reconfigure routines and coordinate new schedules

- Shop for school supplies, uniforms, and gear

- Arrange after-school activities and transport

- Dive into homework help, project planning, and teacher communication

All while balancing their professional roles and maintaining some semblance of self-care—if they can squeeze it in.

This added layer of invisible work has real consequences in the workplace:

Diminished Focus: Balancing a mental checklist of both work and home responsibilities can make it hard to stay focused and present at work, leading to reduced productivity.

Limited Time for Career-Advancing Work: When women are constantly pulled into unpaid, behind-the-scenes work, there's less time and energy for strategic, promotable tasks.

Risk of Burnout: The relentless juggle of professional duties and invisible home labor puts women at higher risk of chronic stress, exhaustion, and burnout.

Slower Career Growth: Time spent managing the invisible workload is time not spent on projects that drive recognition, promotions, and pay raises, ultimately impacting career progression.

The solution isn’t just about women doing less; it’s about shared responsibility and systemic support:

Ways you can help as an employer:

- Acknowledge the invisible work and its impact on employees

- Offer flexible work arrangements that allow women to balance their responsibilities without sacrificing career growth

- Provide resources for childcare and family support

- Distribute non-promotable tasks equitably across the team

Ways you can help as a part of her village:

- Engage in open discussions about the division of household responsibilities

- Utilize shared tools, like digital calendars, to evenly distribute the mental load

- Recognize and validate the invisible work being done daily

As we navigate another busy back-to-school season, let’s make the invisible visible. Recognizing and redistributing this hidden labor isn't just about supporting women; it’s about fostering healthier, more balanced families and workplaces. Because when we lift the burden of invisible work, everyone thrives.