Employment Law Solicitors and Paternity Leave

The media recently gave a lot of publicity to the fact that Prime Minister David Cameron took his full entitlement of two weeks' paternity leave following the birth in August of his daughter. However when it comes to the general public, employment law solicitors are concerned that paternity leave regulations are relatively complex and that this could result in some new fathers failing to take their entitlement. Therefore, employment law solicitors will be watching the Coalition government with interest, looking for any changes to paternity leave law.

At present, new fathers with sufficient service at the company for which they work are able to take two weeks of paternity leave with statutory paternity pay at either £124.88 per week, or 90% of their average weekly salary, whichever is the lower. But employment law solicitors point out that at such low rates of pay, not all men are able to take the time off. Indeed, a 2009 survey showed that 45% of new fathers neglected to take the leave to which they were entitled, despite a massive 88% claiming they would have liked to. Employment law solicitors suggest that this could mean that the current rate of statutory paternity pay is not high enough.

When the previous government was in power, it proposed the introduction of Additional Paternity Leave, or APL for short, which would allow new fathers to take the second half of their partner's maternity leave. Employment law solicitors do acknowledge that such a plan would increase paternal access to leave. But many trade organisations and employers argued that it would have produced too much bureaucracy, thanks to written declarations having to be submitted but both mother and father to their respective employers. The Coalition still hasn't decided whether or not to continue with plans to implement these regulations.

All the same, parents, employers and employment law solicitors alike appear to agree that a new, simple and fair set of rules should be introduced. According to the Coalition it is committed to providing flexible parenting from the early stages of pregnancy. This could be a hint that the Lib Dem idea of giving men time off for ante-natal appointments could go ahead.

Whatever happens regarding the law and new fathers' rights at work, it seems certian that some changes are necessary to make sure that the system is fair and workable. For now though, it looks as though employment law solicitors and the public at large will have to wait to find out their paternity leave fate.

Comments? Questions? Email Here

© HowtoAdvice.com

How to Advice .com