UK government wants companies to do more for new parents

Shared parental permission to level the gender playing field

As of December 1 this year, fathers have the same rights as mothers when it comes to time off from work after the birth of a child.

For all babies born after April 2015, employers must offer up to 50 weeks of shared parental leave, instead of the father’s usual fortnights.

Parents use maternity leave allowance

In a move that has been welcomed by a generation of working mothers, fathers can now choose how to divide their paternity leave between them, opening the door to a much more equitable division of childcare. In fact, a recent Mumsnet survey found that prior to these changes, about 39% of parents had to use their paid vacation to support their partner and new baby postpartum.

Now, it will be possible to share up to 50 weeks of leave and 39 weeks of salary in any combination, in addition to a compulsory period of 2 weeks immediately after childbirth, which must be taken by the mother. The message, it seems, is getting through: Recent research by outsourcing company ADP found that as many as a third of prospective parents surveyed plan to take advantage of the new legislation.

shared parenting rights

There is no doubt, however, that a radical cultural change in attitudes will not happen overnight. Employers are concerned about the effect these changes will have on their workforce, and parents fear losing money and status if they leave their jobs for months.

The Scandinavian model, however, is proof that shared parenting rights can become the norm when government and business work together. In Sweden, Norway and Iceland, a percentage of the leave is reserved exclusively for parents, around 80% of their salary; the so-called “daddy share”.

Far from creating pressure, the head of one of Norway’s largest labor associations claims that it actually “strengthens the position of the man in the family and the position of the woman in the workplace.”

So for the new laws to make a real difference here, the Government is calling on employers to take positive action: make employees aware of their rights, align pay and vacation notice periods to simplify the system and maintain the right of parents to return to the same job after their leave.

In return, they can expect to benefit from a system that allows them to keep talented women in the workforce and have a more motivated and productive workforce overall.