Baby On The Way? Think Paternity Leave



Paternity leave is when a father-to-be takes a break from work upon the birth of the child. Although, there it is allowed for fathers to take advantage of this, the said leave is rarely paid. The state of California was the first state to offer a paid paternity leave in 2004.

The British government has approved a paid leave, giving fathers about $200 a week while on a paternity leave. Other countries like Sweden, Japan, Finland, Greece, Australia, France Spain, Blegium, Germany, Ireland and Norway are offering parental leave benefits. Although, in the United States, paternity leave is not paid, a lot of fathers are still taking day off and vacation when their baby is born.

Actually, not all fathers are aware that their organization or company is offering paternity leave. According to Monster Intelligence Father’s Day Survey, about 31% of fathers know about such work benefit. From that small percentage, only more than half of them or 58% actually used it.

In a survey by the Families and Work Institute in 2005, only 13% of employers provide paid paternity leave in the United States. This could be considered backward compared to other developed countries who are offering paid paternity leave. Take Italy as an example, fathers could have a leave for three months which still allows them to take about 80% of their salary.

Paternity leave is actually mandated by the law. According to the Family and Medical Leave (FMLA), a father of a new child, whether adopted or foster, could take an unpaid leave of not more than twelve weeks. After the twelve weeks, there should be no problems returning with your job. The employer must allow you to retain your position, salary, benefits, and work seniority.

However, not everybody could take advantage of this job-protected paternity leave. You could only take advantage of this is you have worked with your employer for at least 12 months or 1,250 hours. The paternity leave also applies if you work for a local or state federal government or any company that has more than 50 employees.

Companies can also have their own regulations about paternity leave. For example, there are some companies that refuse such benefit for employees who have crucial role in the company and those who are part of the 10% highest earning employees in the company. Aside from that, having your partner or wife working in the same company may also affect your parental privileges. The best thing to do is to coordinate with the human resources department about the benefit.

What do you get with spending time with your new baby?

Fathers who have taken advantaged of the paternity leave would say that the experience was wonderful. Taking time off to bond with the baby and the family, helps a father reconnect with a man’s commitment to his family.

A lot of factors contribute to a father’s refusal or inability to be with the child early in their lives, like sacrificing their income. There are parents who cannot extend their leaves due to the family’s economic situation. That is aside from that fact that some fathers on a paternity leave would often find themselves scrutinized by some of their co-workers.

But it is beyond that, paternity leaves will both benefit the father and the child. It is just a matter of making the government and also the public to understand that.


By Anders Eriksson
You may contact me through my Help Desk


Comments

*Name:
*Email:
Website URL:
Title / Subject:
Hide my email
*Comments:
*
 



Menu


My Articles







   Related Sites

My Articles


The Real Deal With Home Paternity Testing
... tests. There are some home kits that cost as low as ...

Everything About Paternity And Whatnot
... and linear way. It should be noted however that medicine ...

Why Undergo Prenatal And Postnatal Paternity DNA Testing
... most used by paternity testers. DNA is determined through ...

Establishing Paternity
... old. The affidavit can be prepared by a lawyer and needs ...



Related Products:

Related News:

 
Rollins has option to take paternity leave - Philadelphia Inquirer

    

Baseball Nation

Rollins has option to take paternity leave
Philadelphia Inquirer
Tuesday, after a tweet from the team's Twitter account welcomed Camryn Drew Rollins into the Phillies' family, it was announced that Papa Rollins had been placed on the Paternity Leave List and replaced on the roster by catcher Erik Kratz, ...
Phillies place Rollins on paternity listFox News
Utley's knee still soreVineland Daily Journal
A baby girl, Camryn Drew, for Jimmy Rollins, wife JohariPhiladelphia Daily News
NBC Chicago -phillyBurbs.com
all 81 news articles »



Paternity case: SC to hear ND Tiwari's plea today - IBNLive.com

    

IBNLive.com

Paternity case: SC to hear ND Tiwari's plea today
IBNLive.com
New Delhi: The Supreme Court will on Wednesday hear Congress leader ND Tiwari's plea against being forced to give his blood sample to determine a paternity lawsuit. Tiwari has challenged a Delhi High court order that instructs the registrar to allow ...
Paternity Suit: Tiwari asked to give blood sample on May 26Indlaw.com
Paternity suit: Give blood sample on Saturday, court tells ND TiwariTimes of India
Paternity suit: HC asks Tiwari to give blood sample on May 26The Hindu
NDTV -Moneylife Personal Finance site and magazine
all 53 news articles »