As part of the efforts to retain more female talents after maternity leave across its business, Citi’s Asia Pacific markets and securities services (MSS) business has launched the Maternity Matters Programme on Friday (Mar 16).
In a media statement, Citi said that similar Maternity Matters programme has already started in Hong Kong and Singapore and is set for further roll out across the region this year. The initiative aims to support MSS employees during and after their maternity leave, while completing the existing infrastructure in place to support working mothers at Citi already across the bank’s Asia Pacific network.
At the launch events in Singapore and Hong Kong, managers from various MSS businesses had the opportunity to learn about the new framework. Among them were:
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The workshop was designed with the help of Citi’s diversity team in partnership with human resources as a result of a taskforce led by Asia Pacific head of corporate equity derivatives, Sue Lee.
Learning from her own experience as having successful professional career in Citi without abandoning her duty as a mother, Ms Lee strongly believes that better support will help ensure working mothers with young children to stay and continue to develop themselves at Citi.
Ms Lee said, “Post maternity is a challenging period for new parents, and statistics show that this period coincides with high female attrition across some markets in the markets and securities services business. Often this is driven by concern about returning and managing the life/work balance rather than by a real desire to quit or the long term.”
“Our Maternity Matters programme aims to address key concerns of women going on and returning from maternity – so that we may support and retain female talent at Citi for the longer term,” she added.
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