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Grappling with Shared Parental Leave?
My Family Care ran a survey in April 2014 asking Human Resources Leaders, of UK companies, about their thoughts and plans for Shared Parental Leave (SPL).
What emerged is that a small proportion of companies seem to be leading the charge. These companies are clear about embracing the opportunity that the new legislation brings to enhance their family-friendly/flexible working position.
But there is also a large majority who are still working through the issues and implications.
If you're looking for guidance on Shared Parental Leave, our HR Resource Pack is a must read.
SPL Resource Pack for HR
My Family Care, and leading law firm Hogan Lovells, have compiled a whole range of resources to help you understand and think through all the aspects of Shared Parental Leave.
Information on each of the resources included in the pack is detailed below.
1) 'Getting to Grips' Shared Parental Leave Guide
Leading employment lawyer Ed Bowyer of Hogan Lovells provides a detailed overview of the regulations and some interesting observations and insights if you're try to get to grips with legislation changes.
2) Maternity and Paternity Benefits Benchmark
Over 100 companies told us what they offered to maternity and paternity leave takers in terms of duration and levels of pay.
3) Survey Results
Read the results of My Family Care's survey in April 2014, to better understand what companies perceive the key issues, obstacles and opportunities of Shared Parental Leave to be. The results provide an interesting snapshot of current thinking.
4) Hogan Lovells Case Study
Bringing Shared Parental Leave to life... Read our SPL case study and model answer from My Family Care's client, and leading law firm, Hogan Lovells.
What is Shared Parental Leave?
A fully flexible system of parental leave is set to be introduced in England, Scotland and Wales in April 2015, allowing new parents to trigger shared, flexible leave at any point after the first two weeks of leave. Mothers and fathers (or of course same sex partners) will then be able to share the remaining 50 weeks between them by taking the leave in turns, in different blocks, or at the same time.
New parents will need to ask their employers to agree any proposed pattern of time off and employers will retain the right to insist it be confined to a continuous block, with no more than two subsequent changes, but there is considerable scope for this to change the way leave is perceived and treated by all.
It's becoming clear that many of the organisations My Family Care works with see Shared Parental Leave as an opportunity to take an enabling approach to parents wanting to integrate work+family.
In the competition to attract and retain high calibre talent, employers are continually looking for fresh ways to demonstrate a commitment to making life work for their people who are called upon to deliver in demanding roles.
That's where we come in.
