Partner Article

SMEs can help change parental leave attitudes

People working in small businesses are very aware of how disruptive parental leave can be. As a large organisation made up of many autonomous units that are run as small businesses, we know what the issues can be. Every employee is vital in a small business. There are no spare hands.

This can make discussing plans to start a family with managers - and sometimes even junior colleagues – something of a taboo. This concern can be more acute for candidates applying for a job at a small company. They fear that if their prospective boss were to get wind of their plans to have a baby, it could scupper their chance of securing the role.

This apprehension is borne out in the results of a survey we undertook of employees and employers to investigate attitudes towards parental leave. At Enterprise our goal is to reach 50 per cent female employee base so understanding these issues is vital.

The research showed that a majority (71%) of employees aged 20-28 had never asked about a company’s parental leave policies in a job interview. An even more striking finding was that over a quarter (26%) had made the decision to expressly deny plans to start a family, believing that doing otherwise would cost them the chance to get the job.

Not feeling confident enough to be upfront during interviews is obviously a significant problem, so how can we change employee attitudes to approaching these issues?

Part of the answer may lie with new legislation. On 5 April 2015 highlighted, sharing up to 52 weeks of parental leave became a reality as the Shared Parental Leave policy came into force.

In theory, this new legislation should mark a greater opportunity to increase equality and flexibility in the workplace, giving women the option to continue to work after giving birth and men more allowances for longer periods of early years childcare. This shift should make it easier to discuss parental leave openly as it stops being an issue for just women and becomes a choice for either parent.

But, at present, our research shows that employees find it difficult to have frank conversations about company policy on parental leave.

All businesses have a part to play in breaking down barriers to openness. In a country where most people are now employed in organisations with fewer than 250 employees, small businesses can start to address this. Implementing and communicating an open policy on talking about maternity and paternity leave would make discussing and planning these very important parts of work and life far easier. It would benefit employer and employee alike. And when you consider small businesses employ over 15 million people in the UK, the combined effect of greater transparency would be enormous.

We find openness is the best approach to discussing options around parental leave. If an employee matters to you then it is important that they feel that they can accommodate changes in their work life balance and still remain a valued member of the team.

Parents in the future say they want flexibility and transparency - our survey found that as many as 80% of men and 90% of women would prefer not to work full time after having their next baby. The desire for flexible working arrangements is very high, and the best employers will recognise this and improve their offer in response to this demand.

Having children is part of life, and we have found that it does not need to cause a career setback. Diversity and equality policies are needed to counter employee concerns. And at Enterprise, we have learnt that for this to be a success, it must be driven from the top, from the leadership.

A more open and inclusive environment can be made simply by encouraging employees and job candidates not to feel concerned about discussing plans to start a family. This will help built trust and engender loyalty. It is a vital part of being an ‘employer of choice.’

Directors of businesses of all shapes and sizes are recognising how important it is to put people first and encourage equality in their business. It is not always easy to change working patterns or culture to enable employees to achieve their goals. This is something we continue to work on at Enterprise, because we know that if a company truly supports young families, it will improve engagement with current staff and make it an attractive destination for top talent.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Leigh Lafever-Ayer .