More
than two-thirds of employers have already put a paternity leave policy in place
in response to the raft of family-friendly legislation introduced over the past
two years.
The
survey of more than 100 organisations, by employment law firm Allen & Overy,
reveals that 71 per cent of employers have a policy offering working fathers
the right to take a few days leave on the birth of their child.
Chancellor
Gordon Brown announced the introduction of two weeks’ paid paternity leave in
2003 in his budget two weeks ago.
Other
survey findings reveal that 65 per cent of employers have policies dealing with
the right to take time off for domestic emergencies.
Flexible
working arrangements appear to become increasingly popular, with 19 per cent of
organisations having a job-share policy and 23 per cent allowing home working.
Madeleine
Allen, HR director for manufacturing firm Applied Materials in the UK, said,
“These results confirm the general pattern that employers do have to adopt a
more flexible approach to working. We don’t have flexi-time in our company due
to the nature of the industry. However, we do try to accommodate individual
needs of employees.”
As
part of its work-life balance policy, Applied Materials has introduced exercise
programmes on site for employees, said Allen.
Diane
Sinclair, employee relations adviser for the CIPD, believes employers are
introducing flexible working practices due to the tightness of the labour
market and advent of technology.
The
DTI is due to publish its latest proposals on family-friendly working after the
end of consultation on its Work and Parents Green Paper earlier this month.
