Pendulum swung too far in favour of families

Statement from Richard Smith, employment services director at Croner, expert advisor in employment law:

Employers are facing a legal maze of parental legislation over government proposals in the Work and Families Bill. The law could be shifting too far in favour of family needs, bringing into question a basic principle of employment law that supports the employerís need for the íwork to be doneí.



We welcome the clarification on íreasonable contact with employees on maternity leave to help employers plan and ease the motherís return to workí, which will actually help employers deal with otherwise difficult situations more quickly and efficiently.

However, many of the elements of the Work and Families Bill focus on extending employeesí rights and we believe the law currently goes far enough to adequately allow working parents time off to meet family needs. Employersí rights need to be balanced with those of the employee and further provisions for parents would leave many businesses struggling to cope. The pendulum is swinging too far and the law must continue to support employers.

Some organisations are currently discriminating against employees who may yet become parents, which is legally wrong. We would be concerned about this becoming an increasing trend due to unjustified fears by employers that they could not cope with more leave arrangements when paternity leave is extended. Indeed law firms are warning of an increase in sex discrimination claims due to the new Bill.

The outcries, from organisations such as the British Chamber of Commerce and Federation of Small Businesses, over spiralling costs and difficulty replacing staff could be exaggerated however, since no one can accurately predict to what extent fathers would actually take up their right to increased paternity leave. Take-up of the current two-week entitlement is extremely low. One could argue that whilst this privilege is not being taken up by employees, there is no current reason to extend it.

The upshot of not knowing the potential effect of increased paternity leave on their business is that employers will find it very difficult to plan for it, which could exacerbate administration costs and leave them more vulnerable to tribunal claims.

On the whole, employers are trying to accommodate childcare needs as best as they can, indeed our clients often call us with concerns over how they can best meet a mother or fatherís needs, with the least impact on their business.

Businesses are justified in showing concern over what the actual implications and potential costs of the Work and Families Bill will be for them, and we support their need for the íwork to be doneí, whilst also advising that they must fairly consider the need for paid and unpaid time off for all their employees.