Crafting better workspaces for women and mothers

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Over the past decade, offices have become more inclusive spaces for working professionals. These include women and mothers with children. Companies that can afford a large refit and contemporary office plans can easily provide family-friendly facilities such as nursing rooms. However, despite the rising trend, many local companies do not have the financial limitation to do so.

For International Women’s Day this March 8, Real As State, by EdgeProp Singapore, takes a look at how employers can better support and empower females.

Trehaus, a 12,000 sq ft co-working and preschool space in Funan mall, is one of the first local co-working spaces that cater to working parents with preschool children. Its co-founder, Elizabeth Wu, said that the idea of the modern village for like-minded parents is to enable the integration of work and family life.

According to Wu, the membership to Trehaus means that companies do not need to pay for separate office space for working parents or build nursing facilities. In addition, being part of this space also provides a wide network of like-minded parents in the same life stage.

For working parents with toddlers or preschool children, Grit Henoch, the senior director at JLL and former chairperson of JLL’s internal women’s network, recommends employers to create more inclusive office environments. This includes providing physical spaces such as dedicated nursing rooms, ergonomic chairs and standing desks, as well as cushions.

The pandemic experience has influenced companies to roll out widespread work-from-home arrangements. A recent JLL survey found that 60% of individuals prefer to have the ability to work from any location and schedule. Employee retention and productivity are now the focus of making an office an attractive space.

Henoch proposed that a more inclusive workspace can be achieved by involving landlords and the local community. The competition between the comfort of the home and the purpose of being in the office will be a challenging but important focus of office design in the coming years.

This International Women’s Day, watch the full interviews on Real As State, available on EdgeProp Singapore’s Facebook and Tengah Plantation EC YouTube pages, on Feb 24.