DaddiLife
  • Home
  • Family
    • Modern Fatherhood
    • Trying
    • Expecting
    • New Dad
    • Stay At Home Dad
    • Separation
    • Single Dads
    • Step Dads
  • Things To Do
    • Kids at Home
    • Newborn
    • Toddler
    • 5 – 10
    • 10+
  • Health
    • Fitness
    • Family Meal Recipes
    • Safety
    • Wellness
  • Lifestyle
    • Work / Life Balance
    • Money
    • Education
    • Sports
    • Gear
  • Book Squad
  • Reviews
    • Gift Ideas
    • Family Fun
    • Toys
  • Dads at Work
    • Guides for Dads at Work
    • Case Studies
    • Q&A
    • Mentoring Programme
  • Join
  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Write With Us
  • Home
  • Family
    • Modern Fatherhood
    • Trying
    • Expecting
    • New Dad
    • Stay At Home Dad
    • Separation
    • Single Dads
    • Step Dads
  • Things To Do
    • Kids at Home
    • Newborn
    • Toddler
    • 5 – 10
    • 10+
  • Health
    • Fitness
    • Family Meal Recipes
    • Safety
    • Wellness
  • Lifestyle
    • Work / Life Balance
    • Money
    • Education
    • Sports
    • Gear
  • Book Squad
  • Reviews
    • Gift Ideas
    • Family Fun
    • Toys
  • Dads at Work
    • Guides for Dads at Work
    • Case Studies
    • Q&A
    • Mentoring Programme
  • Join

DaddiLife

A parenting website for dads

ExpectingFamily and RelationshipsNew DadWork / Life Balance

Why aren’t new dads taking paternity leave?

written by Hugh Wilson 10th July 2017
dad, daddy, shared parental leave, paternity leave

It’s generally accepted that the first few weeks of a new baby’s life are a crucial time for the whole family. The more time both parents spend with their newborn, the better it is for everyone concerned. Paternity leave is an essential ingredient in forming lasting family bonds.

So it is worrying that, according to several studies, many new dads are still back at work within days of their baby’s arrival. The most recent – a study by the TUC published in June – found that one in four men who became new fathers in 2016 were not entitled to any paternity leave at all, and were forced to head into work within days – or even hours – of the birth of their child.

Paternity leave loopholes

Most men are currently entitled to up to two weeks’ statutory paternity pay and statutory paternity leave, but the study found that over 150,000 new dads fell through gaps in the legislation. Self-employed men were most at risk, receiving no statutory paternity allowance at all.

Another 44,000 new dads didn’t get paid paternity leave because they had not been working for their employer long enough.

TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “It’s really important for dads to be able to spend time at home with their families when they have a new baby.

“But too many fathers are missing out because they don’t qualify – or because they can’t afford to use their leave.”

So is it that men don’t really want to be involved in the messy, sleep-deprived early days of a child’s life? Do we scurry back to work as soon as possible, grateful for the break from nappy changing and midnight feeds?

Are dads too desperate to work?

Nose kisses with the little lad. #daddilifeoftheday by @markieboi01 ??

A post shared by A Community Of Fatherhood (@daddilife) on Jun 19, 2017 at 10:47am PDT

//platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js

One option to help dads spend more time with their new borns is shared parental leave (SPL), which allows parents to split up to 52 weeks off between them, as well as up to 39 weeks of statutory shared parental pay.

But research released last year found that, in the 12 months since the introduction of SPL, only 1% of men had taken up the opportunity.

So is it that men don’t really want to be involved in the messy, sleep-deprived early days of a child’s life? Do we scurry back to work as soon as possible, grateful for the break from nappy changing and midnight feeds?

Quite the opposite. Evidence shows that most new dads would like to spend lots of quality time with their families in the weeks after childbirth, and take a full part in the early trials of parenting. The sad truth is that, for many men, the odds are still stacked against their full involvement in the care of their new born baby, with financial and career considerations being the main reason for the low take-up of SPL.

The SPL research, for My Family Care and the Women’s Business Council, found that although only 1% of men were taking SPL now, 63% would like to do so in the future. One barrier to take up was that 50% of men thought taking SPL would damage their careers.

Another was that 55% of the women surveyed said they didn’t want to share their parental leave. They wanted as much time as possible to bond with their babies.

You can’t really blame mums for that, so perhaps SPL is not a magic bullet when it comes to getting more men to take significant chunks of time off when their babies are born. So what is the answer?

Extend paternity leave?

Working Families, a charity that advocates for the rights of working parents, believes the gaps in current legislation need to be closed.

“We need a level playing field on parental rights and pay – between those classified as ‘workers’, ‘employees’ and ‘self-employed’,” says the organisation’s Julia Waltham.

“But even if all fathers received paternity pay, it often isn’t enough.  Employers who can afford to enhance it should be encouraged to do so – to give fathers the best chance of being there during those crucial first weeks.”

Before the election in June, the Liberal Democrats called for statutory paternity leave to be extended to a month, saying: “Research shows that fathers being more involved in their children’s lives is good for children’s development and good for the health and happiness of the whole family.”

What is clear is that current legislation, even if well intended, is not doing enough to allow men to be more present during the crucial early weeks and months of a child’s life. Society has accepted that involved dads are good for children and families. Now it needs to provide paternity leave that promotes the important contribution made by dads right from the very start.

 

Tell is about your experiences. Did you take paternity leave, and was it enough? What effect did your decision on taking time off have on your family and the bond with your child?

Why aren’t new dads taking paternity leave? was last modified: July 12th, 2017 by Hugh Wilson

Related

Comments

comments

daddaddilifeDaddyShared Parental Leavework/life balanceworking dadsworking familiesworking parents
0 comment
0
Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest
Hugh Wilson

dad, daddy, daddilife, play more month
previous post
Play More Month
next post
Play More Month: Why outdoor play is the best play of all

You may also like

How to Have a Perfect Date Night

11th May 2018

Managing your worklife wellbeing – Rob Bravo

10th May 2017

Becoming a Father changes men in so...

5th June 2018

How old is too old to be...

14th March 2018

6 times The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air...

19th May 2016

Dad and baby bond increases the whole...

10th September 2017

Stay-at-home-dads: primary carer, growing satisfaction

31st August 2017

40% of today’s fathers want a more...

17th June 2017

Chore wars: are dads doing enough housework?

16th August 2017

Shared Parental Leave – 4 years on

8th April 2019

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Keep In Touch

Facebook 90,044Fans
Twitter 2,250Followers
Instagram 0Followers

Get The Latest Dad News




Popular Things to Do

  • Play More Month

  • DaddiLifeForce – The Power of Lego

  • DaddiLifeForce – the magic of story time

  • An important announcement

  • A Parent’s Guide To Tuff Trays

The Dad Index

download the dad index

Download the UK's first ever in-depth profile of the Millennial Father

Writers Community

write with us, daddilife


working dads, flexible jobs for dads
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Youtube

© 2017 - DaddiLife. All Right Reserved. DaddiLife is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.


Back To Top