Career, Gender and Maternity: the Paths of Professional Women in Light of the Opt-out Phenomenon

This article´s objective is to understand the process that leads women to leave their jobs to become fulltime moms and their subsequent reentry, in light of the opt-out movement. The life stories of two women who experience the studied phenomenon were collected. The thematic analysis of the narratives revealed that they did not interrupt their careers solely to dedicate themselves exclusively to their children, but also for reasons related to current job and the lack of family support. In addition, we was found that, during the period of absence, they experienced ambivalent emotions that combined feelings of being unproductive with the pleasures of wittnessing their children's development. Regarding the return to paid work, even with excellent credentials, the interviewees had to overcome obstacles such as lack of self- confidence and corporate stigma against mothers. After returning to work, we observed that they continue to be overloaded, struggling daily to balance the difficult work-family relationship. The results contribute to career studies as they offer a critical view of the opt-out phenomenon by revealing that this movement does not question the structural and organizational inequalities that limit the insertion of women in the contemporary world of work.