How the Non-Linear Career Path Gets Penalized for Women

Women at Work: Career, Leadership & Modern Work · Jun 28, 2026 · 7m · transcript

Episode 80 of Women at Work with Fexingo tackles the 'non-linear career penalty' — the hidden bias against women whose resumes show gaps, pivots, or part-time stretches. Lucas and Luna break down a 2025 Harvard Business School study that tracked 2,000 managerial-track employees over eight years. The finding: women with a career break of 12 months or more were 40 percent less likely to be promoted upon return, even when performance reviews were identical. Men with the same gap saw only a 12 percent penalty. They also discuss the 'zigzag penalty' for women who switch industries rather than…