Fathers ‘are failed in the workplace’

Fathers wanting to take an equal share of looking after young children are being failed by workplace policies, the government is being warned.

MPS called for better support for working fathers to help them care for their children. The Commons women and equalities committee said that despite good intentions, policies aimed at helping fathers are not delivering what they promised, especially for less well-off workers.

A report said the right to request flexible working had not created the necessary cultural change, while the government had admitted its flagship shared parental leave scheme will not meet its objective for most fathers.

The MPS made a series of recommendations, including setting statutory paternity pay at 90 per cent of a father’s wages, and a new policy of 12 weeks’ leave for a father in a child’s first year as an alternative to shared parental leave. The government was also urged to legislate immediately to make sure all jobs are advertised as flexible from day one, unless there was a solid business reason not to.

Maria Miller, who chairs the committee, said: “The evidence is clear: an increasing number of fathers want to take a more equal share of childcare when their children are young but current policies do not support them in doing so. There is a historical lack of support for men in this area.”