When was paternity leave introduced in the uk

In , Sweden introduced cross-gender parental leave available to both parents into law. The UK introduced its first maternity leave legislation through the Employment Protection Act , which was extended through further legislation, such as The Employment Act However, for the first 15 years, only about half of working women were eligible for it because of long qualifying periods of employment.

In , coverage was extended to all working women, in order to bring Britain into compliance with a European Commission directive on this issue. In , male employees received paid statutory paternity leave for the first time, an entitlement that was extended in January This leave is divided into a two week periods.

Eligible employees can take similar periods of Statutory Adoption Leave. It is unlawful to dismiss or single out for redundancy a pregnant employee for reasons connected with her pregnancy. A spouse or partner of the woman including same-sex relationships may request a two week paid at a fixed rate paternity leave.

In the UK, maternity and paternity leave is still not shared equally between parents. What is paternity leave? The rights to paternity leave and statutory paternity pay SPP allow eligible workers to take paid leave to care for a baby or to support the baby's mother following birth.

When was paternity leave introduced? The employment bill introduced paid paternity leave, applying to all children born on or after April 6 of that year. It also created a new right to request flexible working for fathers and mothers. How long do I get? You can take up to two consecutive weeks' paternity leave and during this time you may also be entitled to statutory paternity pay SPP.

When can I take it? Hide this message. Home Childcare and parenting Financial help if you have children. Paternity pay and leave. Print entire guide. Brexit Check what you need to do. Explore the topic Benefits and financial support for families Financial help if you have children Pregnancy and birth Holidays, time off, sick leave, maternity and paternity leave.

We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services. You can change your cookie settings at any time. You can choose to take either 1 or 2 weeks.

You get the same amount of leave if your partner has a multiple birth such as twins. You must take your leave in one go. A week is the same amount of days that you normally work in a week - for example, a week is 2 days if you only work on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Leave cannot start before the birth. It must end within 56 days of the birth or due date if the baby is early.