Time off for dads

We're bottom of the league table

Around the time that Leo Blair was born and the Prime Minister said that he planned not to take time off (although he did in the end), the Finnish PM took parental leave of several months. If little changes as a result of the current review, the UK will continue to be right down the bottom of the European league table of family-friendly nations. Sweden gives 65 weeks paid parental leave - 52 of which are at 80 per cent of earnings, whilst France gives 52 weeks at a flat rate for the second and subsequent children. Denmark, Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg all give varying lengths of paid parental leave.

Our government is stuck in the middle of a bitter fight between employers on the one hand who don't want to see more legal rights to time off for their staff, and employees who want the opposite.

More and more employers are now recognising the need for work-life balance and for employees to have a full family life. These employers are celebrated in the Working Families Employer Awards and Best Boss competition.

The future

Before the end of this parliament (2010), the government has promised to allow mothers to transfer some of their maternity leave to the father, or their partner. This will be called Additional Paternity Leave. While a step in the right direction, Working Families feel the system will be too complicated and will not help fathers whose partners do not work.

For more information about working parents' rights see the Working Families website, e-mail edads@workingfamilies.org.uk, text 07800 00 4722 or call our helpline on 0800 013 0313