We hired an attorney who had stayed at home for a decade; her previous experience and ivy league pedigree convinced someone . . . anyway, she is TERRIBLE! But, maybe she was terrible before she stayed at home. At any rate, that experience has caused me to think twice whenever I see such a resume.

OP is just bitter because her kids are strangers to her, or she has no kids because she is infertile. Now she is mad because "how dare they stay home and then expect to get a job. I didn't take time off, so I will look down on those who did."

I prefer men in the workplace. I am glad I don't have to deal with bitches like you.

I also think that there may be a bit of an adjustment curve - not really with gaps of 1 and maybe even 2 years, but longer than that, I know that adjusting from being your own boss (so to speak) as a SAHM to having to adjust to outside demands may be more difficult for some SAHMs than others. I've seen that a few times and now am leary of it. I've had former SAHMs not understand that when a meeting begins at 9, it begins at 9 regardless of whether your LO woke up late or had a rough night or whatever. The common thread I see is that they have become accustomed to their schedules revolving around either their kids or themselves and have difficulties recognizing that in the workforce, schedules don't actually revolve around their families.

I've never looked at hiring a former SAHM, but I have had more than one candidate who moved away from a certain type of job and wanted to come back. The intervening work was not related. The gap in the resume made the candidate much weaker and he did nothing to convince me otherwise.

I'm doing PT work right now even though I'd prefer to be home full-time. It helps me keep up.

Anonymous wrote:I stayed at home for 5+ years. Went back to work last year and had two job offers within weeks. I did address my gap in my cover letter and had one HR person thnk me for not having PTA volunteer work as part of my résumé.

You may want to look a bit more into the candidates. I promise, we can be excellent employees.

Awesome - good for you!! I've been a SAHM for a year but know that I'll go back to work in the future. Would you mind sharing what kind of work you do and any other advice that may help other SAHM's be as successful in their job search.

Anonymous wrote:What's important to me is if they address the gap in their cover letter and are able to express intelligently why there is a gap and what they have done during that time that might relate to the job and/or what they have done to prepare themselves to return to work.

I have absolutely no problem with a candidate who says something along these lines in their cover letter: "I spent 5 years caring for my young children. During that time, I tried to keep abreast of developments in the field, and maintained contact with former colleagues. As I prepare to return to the workforce, I have been reading x publications (pertinent to the field) and I took time last month to attend x conference."

+1

OP, how much gap are you talking about. one year off? or many years off?

Anonymous wrote:Wow! What a horrible person you are. That is a very judgmental way of thinking and you obviously know it otherwise you wouldn't "feel a bit guilty." I hope karma bites you in the ass someday.

I have a gap because my husband was in a war zone for several months at a time and I stayed home with my son over the summer. I would like to get back into the work force and I just learned he is going back again. My son has special needs so it isn't so easy to just get a nanny. Obviously, I will figure it out. But, hearing this is really heart wrenching.

Here my husband is doing something good for the country and I get slammed for it. Lovely.

Not the OP, but you would be a great candidate...if you lose the martyr mentality. Nobody is slamming you. The OP is simply saying what he/she prefers in a candidate. Clearly, not all employers feel that way.

At the end of the day, it is your responsibility to convince employers that you are a good candidate. You have a great story to tell and there are employers who would be intrigued and impressed by it. But YOU have to tell the story and make the case. You cannot just expect employers to see the gap and understand.

I stayed at home for 5+ years. Went back to work last year and had two job offers within weeks. I did address my gap in my cover letter and had one HR person thnk me for not having PTA volunteer work as part of my résumé.

You may want to look a bit more into the candidates. I promise, we can be excellent employees.

Anonymous wrote:Wow! What a horrible person you are. That is a very judgmental way of thinking and you obviously know it otherwise you wouldn't "feel a bit guilty." I hope karma bites you in the ass someday.

I have a gap because my husband was in a war zone for several months at a time and I stayed home with my son over the summer. I would like to get back into the work force and I just learned he is going back again. My son has special needs so it isn't so easy to just get a nanny. Obviously, I will figure it out. But, hearing this is really heart wrenching.

Here my husband is doing something good for the country and I get slammed for it. Lovely.

Your husband's situation does not make you a stronger candidate for a job position. Sorry.

Wow! What a horrible person you are. That is a very judgmental way of thinking and you obviously know it otherwise you wouldn't "feel a bit guilty." I hope karma bites you in the ass someday.

I have a gap because my husband was in a war zone for several months at a time and I stayed home with my son over the summer. I would like to get back into the work force and I just learned he is going back again. My son has special needs so it isn't so easy to just get a nanny. Obviously, I will figure it out. But, hearing this is really heart wrenching.

Here my husband is doing something good for the country and I get slammed for it. Lovely.

During the days that I wanted to spend more time with my child, I switched to part time. I am an interior architect, switching to part time simply means less projects, less pay. By doing so, I don't have a gap on my resume, and not separated from the commercial world/latest knowledge.

I would highly suggest the expecting moms to take this route instead of staying home full time. Kids will grow up and leave one day.

What's important to me is if they address the gap in their cover letter and are able to express intelligently why there is a gap and what they have done during that time that might relate to the job and/or what they have done to prepare themselves to return to work.

I have absolutely no problem with a candidate who says something along these lines in their cover letter: "I spent 5 years caring for my young children. During that time, I tried to keep abreast of developments in the field, and maintained contact with former colleagues. As I prepare to return to the workforce, I have been reading x publications (pertinent to the field) and I took time last month to attend x conference."

Good question. I am about to give birth and have an established career ( I am 39) and have wondered how the gap on a resume is HONESTLY perceived. I figured it would negative which is why I am not taking more than my maternity leave. I really wanted to quit for at least a year but I figure in this economy it would be really hard to get back into a job at my current level or salary. I am seeing a lot of young and very eager talent ready to work for half my pay coming in to take over. Im kind of surprised so many women quit and assume that getting back into work will be easy.

I'm seeing 2 types of moms - ones who never had much of a career to begin with and ones who are overly experienced with old skills. I feel a bit guilty that I'm totally putting these people at the bottom of my list. I much prefer males or young women with no resume gap.