Being a 'mumpreneur' is an option of last resort for most mums

• Sad truth for mumpreneurs​

Diana Holwerda never intended to become a "mumpreneur", she just fell into self employment through necessity.

Three months after having her first child, her employer asked her to return to work, despite her request to take six months leave. 

Diana Holwerda at her home in Collaroy where she works Photo: James Brickwood

Her attempts to try to breastfeed at work were problematic and her boss ended up selling the business.

Someone then offered her a bookwork job that she could do at home, on the condition that she register her own business.

"Initially I was worse off," said the mother from Sydney's northern beaches. "It took two to three years to build up a client base and credibility, but now I am making more than I was in employment.

"I am not making millions, but I am able to support my family."

New research from the University of Sydney business school has found that self-employment is often presented as a lifestyle choice for women who want to be at home with their children, but who still want to make some money.

"The truth is, for many working mothers, self-employment is an option of last resort, which carries significant economic consequences," the Business School's Meraiah Foley said. 

"Without a doubt, self-employment offers many mothers the flexibility and autonomy they need to accommodate their children's schedules, but that flexibility comes at a steep price".

The study of 60 self-employed mothers from around the country found that an increasing number of Australian mothers are forced into working from home as a result of family commitments.

And despite some high-profile success stories, many suffer significant social and financial disadvantage.

Dr Foley said many mothers are pushed into self-employment by the "high cost and poor availability of child care and employers who are not prepared to recognise the contribution that part-time workers and flexible hours can make to business".

"The stereotypical view of the self-employed mother, the so-called 'mumpreneur', is a woman working from home, running some sort of cottage industry," Dr Foley said.

"Many mothers are pushed into self-employment reluctantly rather than actively choosing it as their ideal option, because of barriers they encounter in the workplace or because of structural constraints, like a lack of child care." 

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Australian Institute of Family Studies has shown that women with young children choose self-employment at more than double the rate of female workers generally.

Just under a quarter of working women with a child under the age 12 take part in self-employment, compared to 9 percent of working women generally.

Dr Foley said self-employment is a more common working arrangement than casual employment among mothers with young children.

Self-employed mothers were less likely than casual workers to return to permanent employment when their children were older.

Dr Foley said mothers often had difficulty negotiating part-time or flexible work. Business cultures were still sometimes hostile to part-time and flexible workers. Part time jobs were often low in quality with limited opportunities for promotion.

"For working mothers with ambitious career goals, or who want work that is challenging and interesting, but can still accommodate the schedule requirements of raising young children, self-employment becomes the only viable option," she said.

Dr Foley said nearly two-thirds of the women in the study were not contributing to superannuation, or building businesses that could be sold to fund a retirement.

More than 85 per cent of self-employed women have either no superannuation savings or savings of less than $40,000, according to figures from the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia.

Self-employed women aged 60-64 have superannuation savings of around $69,000, which is half the amount employed women of the same age have. It is also less than half the average savings for self-employed men nearing retirement age.

Sydney mother Natasha Stewart who runs a business that sets up businesses for other mothers said it took her four years to figure out how to make it financially successful without putting in too many hours.

She said many women often struggle when their business involves selling a product.

After automating her services and selling a digital instead of physical product, Ms Stewart said she tripled her income.