by Paul Guess, CABA
Shared Parental Leave (SPL) was introduced in April 2015. When asked about it, the then Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg explained, ‘more and more fathers want to play a hands-on role with their young children, but too many feel that they can’t.’ The SPL scheme was a way to give more ‘choice’ to families.
Let’s just take a moment to understand what SPL really is. Since April 2015, dads have had a legal right to ask their employers if they can have an extended period of leave from work. People …

A year on from the implementation of Shared Parental Leave, a new report highlights best practice in flexible working and family friendly working and shows how the most progressive organisations achieve the best results for both employee and employer. Workingmums.co.uk’s Best Practice Report 2016 underlines how good family friendly working is not just about having the right policies in place, but about creating the right culture.    The report, which is based on detailed case studies of the winners of the 2015 Workingmums.co.uk Top Employer Awards, identifies what makes a difference in family friendly working. …

Two surveys have come out this week looking at changes to the Children and Families Act 2014 that aim to make working around an expected newborn and a newborn more flexible for parents. The first change, which came into effect on 1 October 2014, allows fathers and partners the legal right to have time off for antenatal appointments. However, according to leading employment law firm Protecting.co.uk, 45% of partners will not be taking the time off.
The reason for this negative view of the change is down to the fact that time …

Some 44% of working mums would consider sharing their maternity leave with their partner, according to Workingmums.co.uk annual survey. The number of women who would consider sharing their leave when the new shared parenting legislation comes in next year has risen by 3% since last year and may in part be due to a rising number of women who are the main breadwinners in their families – over 17% of women who were living with a partner say they are the main breadwinner and only in a small number of …

The majority of new fathers decline full paternity leave entitlement, take fewer sick days than colleagues and demonstrate more company loyalty  
New HR and payroll data analysis from software provider Octopus HR, on paternity leave and the working habits of new dads, has found thatvery few fathers are actually taking the two weeks’ paternity leave to which they are entitled in the UK.
Octopus HR analysed 51,082 records of male employees working full time at 214 companies during a four-year period between 1 June 2010 and 31st May 2014. The data …

Results based on a new survey from Octopus HR

The Valuing Maternity campaign reports, “We are delighted that our campaigning has paid off.  The UN Committee on the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) has concluded that the Government needs to take action on pregnancy discrimination at work.  In their Concluding Observations, the CEDAW Committee expressed concern at reports of persistent discrimination of pregnant women in employment and their access to justice.

“They recommended that the UK Government ensure women’s access to justice in employment cases, including in cases related to discrimination on grounds of pregnancy and motherhood.  Read our blog for …

Maternity leave can fly by, and before you know it you’re thrown back into the daily grind. When it comes to planning your return to work, there is both the emotional and psychological adjustment to consider. For some this can be a comfortable experience, heading back to a familiar environment, and for others it can be all the more difficult. In these situations it is advisable that you prepare for and plan a back-to-work schedule. Agreeing, in advance, on a suitable return to work transition period is not only beneficial …

According to the BBC, New mothers will be able to return to work two weeks after childbirth and share the rest of their maternity leave with their partner under new plans.
From 2015, a fully flexible system of parental leave in England, Scotland and Wales will give women a clearer “route back” to work, ministers will announce.
Watch Nick Clegg explain the policy, and let us know whether you think this is a good idea.

I was interested to hear from Maternity Action that, according to articles in The Telegraph and the Guardian, the Government is planning to announce changes to maternity, paternity and parental leave by the end of October.  It is anticipated that the Government will keep 52 weeks of maternity leave and enable women to transfer as much leave as they wish to the father or partner in the form of Shared Parental Leave.  Maternity Action say, “This approach is a significant improvement on the original model proposed in the Modern Workplaces consultation: maternity leave of …