Maternity and Paternity leave – Is a must care topic!!
The trouble starts already when recruiters choose Man over Woman, because of the fear of losing the woman’s working hours during the Maternity leave. But as a smart and responsible organisation you must be able to not be biased by this.
Start NOW! And make clear that in your company Maternity and Paternity leave have the same importance, frequence and meaning.
YOUR BONUS:
* You may miss out on some very successful, smart and profitable female employees if your recruiters are biased: YOU CAN SET AN END ON THIS!
* And IMAGINE being one of the first companies that have an equal amount of Maternity and Paternity leaves! You’ll become a BIG NAME in the media, highly ATTRACTIVE for new, open minded applicants and PROFITS will rise, because EVERYONE will KNOW YOUR COMPANY!!!
Three Tips
HOW TO MAKE IT HAPPEN
SHOW IT ON YOUR WEBSITE
In your values, statements, job descriptions and news, let people know what you think about Maternity and Paternity leaves.
Some Examples:
„Our company supports Paternity leave just as much as Maternity leave, because we want the NEW GENERATION to have a positive, caring and present father figure!“
„You love challenges? – Do a Paternity leave!“
„We support our Moms to do a Maternity leave AND We support our Dads to do a Paternity leave!“
„Your kids need their dad just as much as they need their mom! – They need YOU!“
COMMUNICATE WITH SOON TO BE DADS
Male employees should know that Paternity leave is NOT just an option, but something to be proud of.
Some examples:
„Taking a Paternity leave means that you as a Dad will be more involved in your kids life. You probably regret it, if you don’t take this opportunity.“
„Paternity leave is your chance to release pressure from your wife/woman. After the pregnancy she maybe wants to stick to a more regular schedule. Don’t forget, childcare is a lot of work.“
„This is a chance to build a strong bond between you and your child. You can have a huge influence on your child, you shouldn’t miss this opportunity.“
COMMUNICATE WITH SOON TO BE MOMS
When a woman is pregnant in your company, at the begging of employment or in meetings: Communicate!
Some examples:
„We offer the same career opportunities to men and women and as a very successful part of our company, you should not hesitate to take these opportunities! Let your man support you by doing a paternity leave!“
„Gender roles are nowadays not important. Relieve your child from typical gender roles and let it grow up knowing that men can do childcare and household just as good as women can.“
„XY’s husband is currently doing a paternity leave and both are very happy. I’ll set you a meeting with XY so you can have informations and experience from first hand.“
BUT DON’T FORGET, THAT IT IS EVERYONE’S OWN DECISION HOW TO HANDLE MATERNITY AND PATERNITY LEAVE, DON’T PUT PRESSURE ON YOUR EMPLOYEES, BUT BE SMART AND INFORMATIVE.
Author: Celine Landgraf
Feminism at the Workplace 