Grand Parental Leave
24th April, 2015
There has been much talk recently about the new shared parental leave legislation which allows both partners to share parental leave during the first year of a child being born or adopted. There now appears to be further promises in the Labour party’s manifesto to cover the needs of grandparents who help with childcare.
The Labour party stated that, should they be elected, they would assist grandparents by allowing them to share up to 18 weeks of unpaid leave in year one or four weeks in any subsequent year, if the child’s parent is working.
Nowadays almost 60% of grandparents provide regular childcare and research has suggested that this has meant 1.9 million grandparents have either left work, reduced their hours or had to take time off to look after their grandchildren, resulting in a loss of income.
Labour believe that the new policy would consider the working family and how it has evolved over the years. Harriet Harman said the policy would “reflect the reality of family life” and “reflect the roles of grandparents” bringing about greater equality in pay and provide better, more flexible childcare.
There are several advantages to this proposed policy.
It would bring about further flexibility to the new shared parental leave legislation and it could potentially lead to reduced financial stress for the family.
It will be interesting to see how the policy will be applied and how it will overcome some of the more complex issues, such as who should take the time off to look after the child.
In terms of business, employers will want to see how this proposed policy could work and will no doubt want to ensure fairness, especially small businesses that may employ several family members. If that is the case several family members leaving at the same time could be catastrophic for the business.
For further information about shared parental leave or any of the proposed changes to employment law please contact Helen Watson on 01244 405565 or send an email to [email protected]
You might also be interested in...
Is there such a thing as a good divorce?
22nd November, 2018
Family Law Partner Sandy Edwards believes there is. Next week, from 26 to 30 November, Resolution, an organisation of 6,500 family lawyers and other professionals, will be promoting “Good Divorce Week” which will focus on how separating and divorcing couples can put their children’s needs first and limit the impact of conflict. The week falls during the government’s divorce... Read More »
Ethics Guidance – Transparency in Price and Service
16th November, 2018
It is reported that a quarter of all complaints dealt with by the Legal Ombudsman revolve around costs. Therefore to avoid complaints and confusion, it is important to be clear from the outset. The new Transparency Rules (which the SRA have now confirmed will come into effect on 6 December 2018) require that accurate and relevant information is... Read More »
Aaron & Partners Increases Recommendations in Leading Industry Guide, The Legal 500
5th November, 2018
Aaron & Partners LLP has once again seen improved rankings in The Legal 500 – a comprehensive guide... Read More »