Women are leaving the workforce not by choice but due to the structural limitations and bias they face. This is commonly tagged as the “motherhood penalty”—a tax on women’s careers that benefits neither them nor Nigeria’s economy.
Why This Matters
When systems force women to choose between careers and children, they exit the formal sector, losing pension, paid leave, and insurance protections. Nigeria could add up to $229 billion in GDP by 2030 by closing the labour force participation gender gap.
State of Play
Nigeria’s Labor Act provides 12 weeks maternity leave at 50% pay. With inflation at 33.88% in 2024, half a paycheck is unsustainable.
● Women already earn 45% less than men, according to the IMF. Now cut that in half during leave. Then factor in childcare costs at over 60% of minimum wage—the math forces them out.
● When formal sector jobs become untenable, they go informal. Women in the informal sector, 50% of the workforce, have no maternity protections at all.
What Works: Proven Solutions
Parental leave and flexible work schedules are already established in some states and corporate organisations, highlighting feasibility as a national law:
● Lagos and Enugu State offer 6 months paid maternity leave.
● FCT offers 16 weeks paid maternity leave and 14 working days paternity leave.
● Standard Chartered Bank provides a minimum of 20 weeks of paid parental leave.
● MTN offers 6 months maternity leave and a 10-day paternity leave, resulting in nearly 100% return-to-work rate in 2024. MTN’s female leadership rose to 41.4%, twice the industry average, driven by programs like “Y’ello Mums” supporting returning mothers.
Bottomline
The system fails women and the economy. Until childcare is affordable, pregnancy bias is eliminated, and leave is fully paid, the motherhood penalty remains a tax on Nigeria’s growth. Women earn less, pay more for care, and get pushed out. Breaking this cycle requires structural change, not just at company level, but across Nigeria’s labor policies.