Post Birth Challenges among Working Mothers in a Higher Educational Institute in Ghana: Implications for Occupational Competitiveness of Working Mothers

Abstract

In Ghana, most formal employment opportunities require employees to work for 8 hours for 5 consecutive days each week. While this may not be challenging to men in the socio-cultural context of Ghana, the socio-cultural expectation of women as carers and home keepers sometimes make this requirement of formal occupations difficult for some women. Of all the challenges facing women in formal occupations in Ghana, one of the least explored is the implication of post birth depression on the productivity of women within the formal sector in Ghana. This paper presents data from an exploratory qualitative research that used qualitative interviews to explore the post birth mental health challenges of working mothers within a public university in Ghana. The paper reveals that working mothers suffer stress, frustration and self-esteem challenges and that these challenges have implications for the occupational wellbeing of women in higher educational institutions. While these challenges are similar for women in other occupational fields, our argument is for higher educational institutions to consider the real and present implications that these challenges have for the occupational progress of working mothers.