Would you and your partner take time off work if companies offered 6 months paid parental leave for all?

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Having a new baby is an exciting time regardless of whether you’re a mum or a dad, and spending time with them in those first few months is a precious experience. A year ago Aviva introduced its equal paid parental leave policy, where all employees can take up to 12 months off, with no need for mums to share their maternity allowance. With this in mind, Aviva would like to hear your thoughts on giving all parents the same amount of time off.

Here’s what Caroline Prendergast, Interim Chief People Officer at Aviva has to say: “We decided to make all parents at Aviva eligible for the same amount of paid and unpaid time off, regardless of gender, sexual orientation or how they became a parent. We thought that dads would want to spend time with their new arrivals, just as mums do. One year on, our experience shows that with financial barriers removed, they do just that.”

You can find out more about Aviva as an employer here.

If all companies offered 6 months paid parental leave, do you think your spouse or partner would be prepared take the time off work to share childcare duties? If not, why not?

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Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

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And how many cite money as an objection when it’s on full pay.

Yes. We would love this! I really hope that things go this way. I think it would be lovely for dads to be much more involved in the early months.

I would love to but we both work for small companies so in reality it would cause issues.

This would be amazing but unlikely to happen

I see no reason why parental responsibility should not be a shared thing - and,indeed, why leave should not be given to both parties. Unpaid leave, however, may be a completely different issue - that would be down to individual needs.

Unaffordable for businesses; unfair to those opting not to have children unless it is offered to them.tbh tired of hearing how people who "disadvantaged" by being out of the office expect to progress as fast as those who have been ever present. You make a choice so please don't complain about the consequences!

It’s a protected characteristic alabaster. Protected under law.

Understood hohocabbage. I am not averse to maternity or paternity leave - what is NOT protected is a "right" to be automatically put on an equal footing with those who have not taken time out.

My husband would have loved the chance to take more time off with the children. The nature of the maternity/paternity leave system encourages us to think of the men as the breadwinners and it is quite an outdated system. We would have if we could split the leave more evenly.

it is good to have options. My DH would probably not have taken leave. When ours were babies you barely got any maternity leave never mind this. Good idea.

I don’t think that’s right alabaster You are supposed as a woman not to be disadvantaged by taking maternity leave. That surely means you need to be on an equal footing with those (male or female) who haven’t. Let’s face it a year or two out of a 60+ working life shouldn’t have to hold you back.

In all honesty probably not - maybe if he was a different guy he would but not my current husband. He likes work and even with his two weeks off after my son was born he was itching to get back into it. Plus neither of my kids would take a bottle so my husband was helpless for feeding them.

I wish we could have had with ours. Does sound a bit too good to be true. Wouldn't want to coast into debt because of it.

Lovely idea, but not sure it would work.

Absolutely. My partner and I were both at home with our baby for the first 12 months and I feel it really cemented our bond with our child and built our confidence as parents.

Funny enough I have a colleague whose hubby works for Aviva. His view is that no man who cares about his career would take 6 months out of work to raise a family. I'm sure that would be the case in most companies until parenting is truly seen as a joint effort

My company offers the same benefit to men and women and so far only 2 men have taken the opportunity. Both of them aren't high fliers and tbh I don't think they want to be

Absolutely, that’d be the dream for most I think

My DH would have done this had he been working when we had our two, as it was he was at home all the time anyway and a great help. While I was breastfeeding DH took care of what came out the other end. He did most of the night shift so I could sleep and we shared all the household chores . Teamwork !

I think the concept is a good idea, but I wouldn’t go for it personally! I think my hubby would want the leave and treat it as a holiday and not be much help!

I think it sounds like a fantastic idea and I can't see why anyone wouldn't want to take companies up on it so long as the finances made sense.

No he wouldn't have as he was the higher earner but I think it is a good idea to offer this as it isn't the case with all families so should be a choice .

my dp would use it!

Yes, babies grow so quickly and every moment with them is precious to both of us!

I think it is a good idea in principle

I'm not sure. I feel like it would be very difficult to get back into the swing of things after so much time off together