LinkedIn has just added new job title options for stay at home mums and dads

Plus why this is such an important step for new parents

Earlier this week, we reported on the NHS launching new maternal mental health hubs around the UK. It's no news that new mothers - and fathers - need more support during one of the biggest periods of change in their lives.

And this week, Linkedin have announced that they'll be listing the job titles 'stay at home mum' and 'stay at home dad' on their website.

The business networking platform has shared that it's making the move in an attempt to make re-entering the world of work, for new parents, that bit less daunting.

By adding the titles to their existing roster, they're enabling users to bridge the gap between employment, parental leave, and full-time parenting.

Previously on the site, your job title had to be linked to an employer, making it impossible to indicate when you were on paid maternity leave or had left your role to care for your kids full time.

This has now changed, in line with the new job title additions.

Sadly, the coronavirus pandemic has disproportionately affected women, and new mothers in particular. 47% of mothers have quit or been made redundant in lockdown compared to 13% of men.

In November, the the female unemployment rate sat at 17%, compared to 13% for men. This move from Linkedin is a step in the right direction for all working parents - and especially women.

The changes don't stop there - in coming months, the platform has promised to enable users the ability to indicate what kind of leave they're currently taking, from parental leave, to family care leave, to a sabbatical.

Linkedin's director of engineering Bef Ayenew said of the changes: "I wholeheartedly agree that we need to normalise employment gaps on the profile to help reframe hiring conversations."

It's a welcome step from such a well-known organisation. Making the world of work a little less harder to navigate for new parents is only a positive. We're looking forward to seeing more changes being made around flexible working, parental leave and non-linear career progression in the coming months.

What changes are you looking forward to seeing the most as the UK returns to work post-vaccines?