Why new Kiwi fathers fear taking parental leave – study

NewsHub 17 October 2017
Family First Comment: Looking forward to the Minister for Gender Discrimination taking up this issue.
Yeah right!
A new study has revealed 53 percent of new fathers in New Zealand don’t take the full parental leave they are entitled to because they may be seen as less committed to their jobs.
The results released by recruiting company Hays, show 33 percent said parental leave is viewed as the right and responsibility of the mother, while 14 percent said it’s due to a negative impact on their finances.
“To help make real and lasting gender equality progress, we need to talk in terms of ‘family-friendly’ rather than ‘women-friendly’ policies and offer and accept the decision of men to work flexibly and take an equal amount of paternity leave without making assumptions about their career motivations or applying unconscious or otherwise career consequences,” Managing Director of Hays Jason Walker says.
“While there are many examples of men in New Zealand who are taking on the primary caring role, a stigma remains. To help reduce this, employers can encourage male employees to take parental leave.”
In the survey only 22 percent said their organisation offers parental leave for male employees on equal terms to female employees.
READ MORE: http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/health/2017/10/why-new-kiwi-fathers-fear-taking-parental-leave-study.html