Coalition government proposals to overhaul the current parental leave system have been slammed by employers’ groups as an example of "rushed thinking" that "fundamentally ignores" the needs of business.
Speaking yesterday at the launch of a report on parenting by thinktank Demos, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg confirmed that measures formulated by the previous Labour government to allow fathers to take up to six months of their partner’s unpaid maternity leave if the mother returns to work will be introduced in April. Men are currently entitled to two weeks off after the birth of a child.
But Clegg also said that the government intended to launch a consultation on a ‘proper’ system of shared parental leave that will be introduced by 2015. The aim is to enable couples to take paid-for leave in a number of chunks rather than a single block or take up to five months off together rather than one after the other if they so desire.
Clegg said that he wanted to consult with employers to ensure that the new system was "sustainable and affordable".
"We want to create an environment that encourages parents and their employers to discuss leave plans openly and constructively," he added. "And we want to help businesses keep the staff that they have invested in. That, ultimately, leaves British companies benefitting from a happier, more productive workforce."
But the proposals had a mixed reception. Although welcomed by parents groups, employers were less enamoured. David Frost, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, warned that, while the move may prove politically popular, it was "another example of rushed thinking", which "fundamentally ignores" the needs of business and small ones in particular.
"Business is not against the principal of shared parental leave, but how is an employer expected to plan and arrange cover with this fully-flexible system? This is too difficult for small businesses to deal with, and could prevent them from taking on staff at a time when they are expected to create wealth and jobs," he said.
The ‘rigid rules’ that the government intended to abolish were the "very same rules needed by business to help them plan" and the proposals suggested that the government was "out of touch" with how to support business owners, Frost added.
Alistair Tebbit, a spokesman at the Institute of Directors, agreed, saying it was "vital" that any new costs or administrative burdens associated with implementing a system of paid flexible parental leave must not be imposed on employers. It is currently unclear whether the system will be paid for by business or subsidised by the government.
"Our current system of maternity leave is already difficult and costly for firms – particularly SMEs – to operate. If employees were given the opportunity to take leave in short blocks, the system would become virtually unmanageable. How would firms arrange cover?" he said.
The government needed to take on board the message from businesses and get the detail of this policy right as "making it harder for firms to employ people and encumbering them with time-consuming regulations" did not promote economic growth, Tebbit added.
