Granting employees with paid maternity leave is compulsory for most countries around the world that it naturally becomes a company policy, but what about paternity leave? Historically, the norm said that taking care of a newborn baby was a ‘mother thing’, so new fathers did not have to worry about taking parental leave. But there has been a cultural shift regarding this notion. As more individuals believe in equally-shared parenting, more organizations respond to this sentiment by offering more paternity leave. Despite not being as common as maternity leave, creating a paternity leave policy for new dads in the workforce is worth considering for various reasons.
Benefits of Paternity Leave
Providing a comprehensive package of employee benefits is a delightful way to attract and retain employees. Paternity leave is a benefit that has gained popularity for the past few years. While paying additional leave for employees may appear to be a costly strategy for small companies, the benefits businesses can reap may exceed the drawbacks.
1 . Eradicating Stigma
There is a stigma widely-circulated among the society that taking time off for childcare should only be done by mothers. In many circumstances, prejudice against fathers who take paternity leave still exists. Many fathers find it difficult to fight this, which may prevent them from taking use of this benefit even when it is available and accessible. In this case, it becomes the homework for employers and HR leaders to not only put paternity leave policy in place, but also encourage working dads to make use of them without fear of judgement.
2 . Increasing Retention
Employees consider benefits packages when deciding whether or not to take a job offer, and offering paid paternity leave may help you recruit and retain talented employees. This is especially true for younger employees, since research has shown that millennial and Gen Z employees value workplace benefits highly. If employees are respected and valued to the point that fathers are given time off from work to relax with their babies, they will respect the company even more. Offering paternity leave may also encourage employees to stay for the long-term, lowering the expenses of churn and recruitment.
Read Also: Singapore Offers Cash Benefits for Parents Ineligible for Paternity and Maternity Leave
How to Implement Paternity Leave?
First of all, you need to consider how much time off you plan to provide employees for paternity leave. Then, you can discuss with the HR department about how these employees will reacclimate to the office when they return as well as coming up with a budget plan.
Cost and Length
Some countries provide legal regulations on paternity leave and the length varies. In Singapore, working fathers, citizens, permanent residents, and immigrants are all entitled for two weeks of paid paternity leave. According to Pacific Prime, here are some prerequisites:
The length of paternity leave will have a direct influence on a business’ operations. Therefore, leaders should calculate how long it is viable to go without that employee and the expenses required. At the same time, you want to be flexible, so consider giving them some time off before or after the kid is born. Allowing employees to vary their time over the year is another effective means of achieving such a balance.
Assistance in Returning to Work
Returning to work after an extended hiatus might be stressful. It will be difficult for the new fathers in your workforce to get back into the groove of business because childcare will offer many sleepless nights and a rush of new experiences. As a result, having a transition program for employees returning from paternity leave will be quite valuable. Allowing returning fathers to work from home or part-time until they readjust is one way to achieve this. You can also delegate an HR staff to give extra assistance and support for fathers who are recently returning to work, since they may need more time to get back in their A game.
Fathers should have the same right to take time off work to spend with their newborn child as mothers do. After all, parenting needs both the role of a mother and a father, especially in the first few days or weeks. While paternity leave is now considered a luxury by many businesses, it is hoped that as more contemporary companies integrate the trend into their HR policy, it will become a standard practice for businesses all over the world.
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