The government recently published their intention to consult on the requirement for employers with more than 250 staff to publish their parental leave and pay policies.
The announcement came from Business Secretary, Greg Clark, as part of a number of new ways for the government to back businesses and entrepreneurs, support workers from the current industrial strategy.
Statutory entitlements to leave and pay for new parents are an essential part of their strategy for ‘good work’ and of course can be highly influential to the participation, retention and progression of parents, especially mothers, in the work.
Many employers can and do go further than the legal minimum for parental leave and pay. However, very few make their policies available to prospective job candidates, leaving them in the position of deciding whether to ask for details and at the same time risking discrimination.
If given the go ahead, this change will allow job applicants to make better informed decisions about whether they can combine the role with caring for their family. However, having a published policy in place can simply be a tick box exercise in many cases. The real question prospective candidates will want answered is how often family friendly polices are willingly put into practice, and whether employees accessing them feel their requests are welcomed rather than seen as an inconvenience.
For more information, or to review your parental leave and pay policies, get in touch with us at Redway HR.