At present, fathers in the UK don’t get a great deal when it comes to Paternity Leave. Current legislation permits fathers to take a total of two weeks paid leave at the same rate as Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) £123.06 per week. Whilst the total Maternity Leave is 52 weeks only 39 weeks is supported by SMP.
The last couple of years have seen increasing pressure on the Government to increase the time allowance for Paternity and Maternity Pay, with plans to increase the latter from 39 to 52 weeks. At present, some mothers choose to return to work at the end of the 39 week SMP period because they cannot afford the remaining time off work unpaid. If SMP were to be increased to 52 weeks, the additional time out of the workplace would place more pressure on businesses. However, the UK recession saw the Government forced to shelve the increased SMP period and opt for a Parental Scheme instead.
The new scheme will allow families to choose which parent stays at home with the child between 6 and 12 months of age. In effect, this means that the leave transfers from the mother to the father, allowing the father to take up to six months leave once the mother has returned to work. Some of this leave may be paid if any of the SMP has not been claimed.
Parents will be required to ‘self certify’ by providing details of their eligibility to their respective employer. Employers and HMRC will both be able to carry out further checks if required.
The AP Partnership believes that whilst the scheme does provide families with flexibility in looking after young children, it does not provide any extra financial support. Moreover, the mother and father’s respective employers will be forced to organise and police the new system. This will place an extra administrative burden on businesses.
The only shining light in all of this is that the Government must believe that UK business will be looking more buoyant to cope with the burden in 2011.
