Last week I was pleased to sponsor a parliamentary event with John Lewis and Waitrose Partners, Home-Start, and Labour Markets Minister Paul Scully MP to discuss equal parental leave policies.
John Lewis and Waitrose presented new data following a survey of employees on take up of equal parental leave and to hear how they are working with other organisations to provide practical support to families in Romsey and Southampton North and across the UK.
At the event in Parliament, which was also attended by a wide variety of different organisations, charities, and social media influencers, we discussed what more the government and employers can do to equalise the parental leave pay gap and make sure every family is supported in the early years of becoming a parent. The pandemic has shone a spotlight on work-life balance and the role of employers in facilitating their employees to lead rounded lives balancing home, family, and work.
I met with some of the dads working at John Lewis and Waitrose who have returned from the Partnership’s new paid Equal Parental Leave. They were the first retailer to equalise paid parental leave for all parents – a brilliant example of where the John Lewis Partnership is leading the way both as an employer and a retailer.
According to new research carried out among John Lewis and Waitrose Partners who have taken equal parental leave over 94% of co-parents took more than the two weeks statutory leave offered to them by the government while the average took over four months (17 weeks) of paid parental leave. This shows a clear demand from co-parents to have more time to bond with their children and support their partners to recover post-birth.
Introducing equal parental leave will help create a cultural shift in the workplace, making it just as normal for fathers to take on childcare responsibilities as mothers. Studies have also shown that sharing childcare can be good for gender equality and reducing the gender pay gap , yet being able to afford to take time off remains a barrier - particularly for low-income families .
The Partnership’s support for families goes far beyond equal parental leave, they also run schemes such as Give A Little Love – which has donated over £3 million to help those in need. They work closely with two fantastic charity partners, Home-Start UK and FareShare, and local community organisations to make sure the support reaches those who need it most.
In Partnership with Home-Start UK they also run a Healthy, Happy Homes Programme to help families improve their health and wellbeing. With an initial focus on food and nutrition, the programme will also explore sleep and managing household finances – the top three issues which Home-Start volunteers have found families would like more help with.
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