Across the world, mothers of children with special needs navigate a turbulent reality. Prior research highlights the challenges they encounter in balancing invisible care needs at home with the inflexible demands in the workplace, underscoring the urgency of addressing these barriers to advance workplace inclusion. In response to this imperative, the aim of this study is to investigate how inclusive organizational environments can be created to better support mothers of children with special needs.
The present study is organized in two phases. In Phase 1, the study used a systematic review of literature published between 2020 and 2025 to examine the experiences of mothers of children with special needs in accessing/sustaining employment as well as the organizational changes required to support their workplace inclusion. In Phase 2, drawing on established organizational change theory, the study integrates Lewin’s change model and Burke–Litwin model of organizational performance and change to propose a conceptual framework that aims to guide organizations in evolving into more inclusive workplaces for mothers of children with special needs.
Phase 1 of the study identified six overarching themes reflecting the experiences of mothers of children with special needs in accessing/maintaining employment: the employment gap reality; country-wise differences; patterns of discrimination; role conflict; coping strategies; and existing support mechanisms. In addition, three organizational needs emerged as critical for fostering inclusive workplaces: the need to include mothers of children with special needs as a unique dimension of workplace diversity; the need to ensure flexibility is embedded in existing organizational structures; and the need to ensure ongoing support to neutralize past disadvantages. Building on the Phase 1 findings, Phase 2 presents the Triple-R (recognize–redesign–restore) framework as a prescriptive model to enable inclusive change for mothers of children with special needs in organizations.
This study contributes to theory and practice by positioning mothers of children with special needs as a distinct dimension of workplace diversity and highlighting the limitations of “permitted” flexibility (vs “protected” flexibility) in supporting their requirements. The proposed Triple-R (recognize–redesign–restore) framework offers organizations a prescriptive approach to embedding inclusive change, improving human capital sustainability and reducing hidden HR and governance costs.
This paper uniquely focuses on the intersection of gender, disability caregiving and employment, an area underexplored in mainstream organizational literature. Grounded in organizational change theory, it proposes a scalable, systems-based model that can serve as a blueprint for advancing workplace equity.
