The report also found that UK statutory paternal salaries may be “completely out of the quilter for living expenses” and do not respond to inflation.
According to a report by the Women and Equality Commission (WEC), the UK has “one of the worst vacation offers in developed countries.”
It also revealed that the salary of legal fathers in the UK is “completely out of the quilters for living expenses,” and that they are not in response to inflation.
She said the system “urgently requires an overhaul to fit the realities of working parents’ lives,” and that the reforms must begin with longer and better paid parental leave.
The report precedes the government’s paternal leave eligibility review and prior to the employment rights bill moving through the House of Representatives.
International comparison
The committee examined evidence from other models of parental leave around the world and found that there are far more generous paternal leave conditions, particularly in Scandinavian countries.
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Norway, for example, introduced four weeks of non-transferable leave and father payments in 1993. Today, mothers and fathers’ parental leave is paid at 100% of their 56-week earnings for 46 weeks, 80%.
Spain has transformed its system in recent years, starting in a similar location to Britain. The country introduced 13-day pay paternity in 2007, gradually increasing it to 16 weeks, equal to maternity leave between 2017 and 2021, paying 100% of its revenue.
Spain also made a mandatory six-week leave for mothers and fathers. The WEC said it heard from experts who recommend that the UK should also consider enforcing the duration of their father’s leave.
Parental leave rights for the first day
The WEC urged the government to draw lessons from reforming paternal leave in Spain and to increase the father’s paid leave period to six weeks during this parliamentary course.
The committee also urged the minister to remove the requirement that men must be hired for at least 26 weeks before taking parental leave, and said it should be available from the first day of employment.
Commuters on the London Bridge on January 22, 2024. Victoria Jones/PA Wire
The lack of leave for self-employed fathers was also considered “deeply unfair,” and lawmakers were calling for the introduction of paternity allowances, similar to the birth allowances for self-employed mothers.
The report also highlighted the flaws in parental shared leave (SPL). This allows parents to share up to 50 weeks of leave, allowing one or both parents to decide when to take the leave in a more flexible way.
The committee said the SPL is “very difficult for most parents and their employers to understand,” and simplify it and call for it to be more financially attractive to increase intake.
Reform is needed
“It is essential that the government’s proposed review address the fundamental failures of the system, including low statutory wages, inadequate leave periods such as fathers, the elimination of many working parents and guardians, and the flaws and unnecessary complexity of the design of shared parental leave schemes,” the WEC Chairman said.
Owen called on the Minister to commit to meaningful reforms in the medium term “in terms of moving further towards a more gender-equal parental leave system.”
She said: “Tweeting around with the edges of a broken system will disappoint working parents. Much needed changes to paid parental leave systems require significant financial investments, but this is important due to the broader social and economic benefits.”
In response to the report’s recommendations, a government spokesman told the Epoch Times:
“We know that we need to improve our parental leave system and we are conducting reviews to best support working families. We will remove the 26-week service requirements for parental leave through the Employment Rights Bill.”
The government said as part of the review, it will consider all current parental leave eligibility, including father’s leave and salary, as well as the period of leave available to the father.
