The sight of old McDonald's wrappers left new mum Kaitlyn sobbing in the middle of her workplace

Kaitlyn opened the door to a dingy room littered with old McDonald's wrappers. There wasn't even a chair.

That was where she was expected to pump breast milk after returning to work at almost eight months postpartum.

"It looked like a prison cell. I cried," she tells 9honey Parenting.

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After falling pregnant, Kaitlyn had been assured her workplace would be supportive and accommodating when she came back from maternity leave, but "I can tell you that in practice, it's not."

New research from Allianz shows workplaces that prioritise empathy and inclusivity improve employees' wellbeing, but Kaitlyn felt none of that.

Instead, she claims she was ostracised, discriminated against, and her career in the public health sector stagnated.

In her first week back, she was rostered for a 13-hour shift and had to escalate the issue when the person in charge refused to reduce her hours in line with her part-time contract.

"The rostering person flat out said, 'No, you need to work this many hours because that's what our department needs,'" Kaitlyn recalls.

She was exclusively breastfeeding at the time and eventually the shift was changed, but the problems continued.

"The senior physicians that I was working with, kept saying, 'Why aren't you seeing more patients? Why are you taking more breaks? You need to be working faster,'" she says.

"My colleagues just had no idea or didn't care. Going back to work after having my baby was this huge, big change for me and nobody gave a s--t."

Have you got a story? Contact reporter Maddison Leach at mleach@nine.com.au

Allianz research showed that female employees are more likely to have withheld information about their personal situation - like family plans - in the past 12 months due to the fear of being perceived poorly by their manager or organisation.

Women were also more likely (38 per cent) than male employees (28 per cent) to say they've felt tired or exhausted from work, a common complaint among working mothers.

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Kaitlyn also felt passed over for professional development because she was a new mum.

She claims she missed out on a position because her parenting responsibilities meant she was unable to work long hours, weekends and night shifts.

"They just flat out said, 'We can't have you here,'" she says, "They were very unsupportive."

Sadly, her story isn't unique.

The Australian Human Rights Commission previously reported one in two mums experience discrimination during pregnancy, parental leave or on return to work.

While 84 per cent of mothers who experienced discrimination said it negatively affected their mental health, finances, or career, less than 10 per cent made a formal complaint.

Brianna Cattanach, National Manager Mental Health Strategy and Delivery, Allianz, told 9honey Parenting this can be "due to fears of being seen as problematic or unproductive".

Allianz found nearly a third of surveyed employees felt a lack of compassion from their manager towards their personal circumstances, like family responsibilities.

It leaves many struggling with burnout, exhaustion and poor mental health - all common complaints among working parents - and Allianz reported a 30 per cent increase in the number of days employees are taking off due to mental health over a five-year period.

The data proves there's a significant "empathy gap" in many Australian workplaces and it's taking a toll on vulnerable groups like new parents returning to work.

Fortunately, employers can change that by actively listening to employees' concerns, addressing their needs, and creating an inclusive workplace culture.

Jordan, senior executive at charity fundraising platform Raisely, was nervous when she fell pregnant with her second child and had to consider what returning to work would look like with a toddler and a newborn at home.

She knew she'd have to reduce her working days and lose a cut of her income, even though her expected output would likely remain the same.

"I don't know that I could have made the decision to go to four days if I had to take the pay cut," she tells 9honey Parenting.

"It's really heartbreaking if you have to choose money over kids."

Allianz found that 46 per cent of employees say cost of living pressures are negatively impacting their job satisfaction, and Jordan was about to become part of that statistic.

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But when she took her concerns to her CEO, he was supportive and suggested implementing a four day work week for the entire company. That was two years ago.

Today, all Raisely staff work four days a week and Jordan is better able to balance her career with motherhood without taking a pay cut.

She also recently helped establish a staff parent support group to ease the return to work transition for other parents.

It's the kind of support Kaitlyn wishes she had access to.

She wants to see a cultural shift in the way working parents, especially new mums, are treated in the workplace and hopes employers like hers can start leading with empathy.

"To nurture our children, we need to nurture parents."

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