It’s Global Day of Parents 2024 - A great time to update your parental policies
Illustration by Luci Gutiérrez
Published on 31 May 2024 | By Dellwyn Stuart, CEO YWCA Tāmaki Makaurau
Parenting – a partnership in the joys and challenges of raising good humans. When starting out as a parent, I was determined that my partner and I should be fully interchangeable for our kids. Fortunately, he was as committed to that idea, and the formula worked for us. But even with that intention, we entered a world of work as parents where man = breadwinner and women = carer. As a result, my retirement savings have taken a hit, and my career has taken more twists and turns than that of my partner.
Gendered norms in the world of work and the laws that guide employment practices mean we are still well behind how many parents want to operate. It should not be the default that mothers take parental leave – not fathers. Only ~3% of men in New Zealand take parental leave. The opportunity cost for them and their families is considerable. Equimundo, a global NGO promoting nurturing, equitable, nonviolent masculinity, has shown through extensive research that there are multiple benefits from men taking parental leave. It helps women keep and progress in their jobs; children benefit from more time with both parents; men live longer and are happier; care work and household labour are more evenly shared; and family violence decreases. With a list like that, you have to ask why we aren’t prioritising and incentivising this societal shift here in Aotearoa.
What works is parental leave for both partners that is non-transferable. Use it or lose it. While our major political parties are keen to introduce a small element of partner leave for new parents, the Coalition Government has not prioritised this. Fortunately, many businesses are taking action anyway.
If you are considering starting or have already started a family, check if your workplace is GenderTick accredited. We can connect you with organisations leading the way: www.genderatworkcommunity.org.nz.
You can also check the parental leave policies of over 260+ employers on Crayon’s New Zealand Parental Leave Register: www.gocrayon.com.
Employers can take the following steps to support equal parenting:
1. Give each parent the same non-transferable benefits
2. Normalise men taking parental and caring leave
3. Review your parental leave benefits and mitigate detrimental impacts (e.g. KiwiSaver contributions, annual leave, pay reviews, pregnancy loss)
4. Create an environment that supports returning parents (e.g. flexibility, decent part-time roles at senior levels)
It's not just about having the policies, it's how you bring this to life so that it is truly part of your culture. Can you change your culture? What needs to be made more visible? Are senior leaders role-modelling this behaviour? What are the workplace norms holding men back from being more involved? Do all your people leaders have the skills they need to openly support parents?
Saturday is #GlobalDayofParents and a great time to reflect on what your organisation is doing. Caring and parenting responsibilities are a natural and central part of life for many. Through your focus on this, you can help change some harmful, old-fashioned, gendered norms that create limitations for all parents.
