Search Results for: fathers

Working from home can lead to fathers doing less childcare and mothers doing more

Working from home can lead to fathers doing less childcare and mothers doing more

working from homeAn analysis of survey data on 1,694 parents of young children found that working from home can result in a “traditional division of housework and childcare”, with men fearing they may lose their masculinity when taking on more routine tasks. Although the research, by Professor Heejung Chung, of the University of Kent, and Dr Cara Booker, University of Essex, uses data from 2010-16, they believe its conclusions are still valid now, at a time when the pandemic has greatly increased home working. More →

Mental health issues in young fathers caused by a lack of support in work and educational settings

Mental health issues in young fathers caused by a lack of support in work and educational settings

young fathersNew research published by Leeds Trinity University and parenting platform DaddiLife claims that young fathers face preventable barriers when accessing education and employment, leaving some in vulnerable positions with an increased risk of facing mental health issues. More →

Third of fathers unaware of their flexible working rights

Third of fathers unaware of their flexible working rights

flexible working and fathersA new study in the British Sociological Association’s journal Work, Employment and Society has found that 10 percent of mothers and 30 percent of fathers do not know that they have the right to ask their employer to consider changes to how they work as part of flexible working regulations introduced as much as 17 years ago. More →

Four in ten fathers cannot afford to take shared parental leave

Four in ten fathers cannot afford to take shared parental leave

New research commissioned by PowWowNow claims that four in ten fathers cannot afford to take Shared Parental Leave (SPL), suggesting there is a need for policy change to ensure it does not compromise families financially for a father to be equally involved in parenting. More →

Flexible working could improve mental health and lives of fathers

Flexible working could improve mental health and lives of fathers

Father and son walk on beach showing need for flexible workingMen feel frustrated in their jobs and discriminated against at work and want a better balance between work and family life in much the same way as women, according to the results of the annual survey by workingdads and workingmums. One in four dads said they’d had time off work due to mental illness, with a third of those citing the stress of work and home. Around half of working dads said their career had stalled since they became a father. Almost 70 percent admitted they feel stuck in their current role because they fear they wouldn’t be able to find another job with the amount of flexible working they need. More →

Working fathers struggle to find time for parenthood

Working fathers struggle to find time for parenthood

A study of working fathers aged 25 to 40 claims that while the vast majority are closely involved in day-to-day parenting with many sharing responsibility equally with their partner, their employers routinely fail to create a working culture that reflects their needs. According to the report, The Millennial Dad at Work, published by DaddiLife and Deloitte, fathers have to make excuses to get away from their places of work to fulfil their duties and spend time with their children and families. More →

Flexible working means longer hours and different outcomes for fathers and mothers

Flexible working means longer hours and different outcomes for fathers and mothers

cartoon of man working on laptop in open airFlexible working and especially the ability to work from home mean that people tend to work longer hours, a study published by the Hans Böckler Foundation in Germany claims. According to the study, working mothers and fathers make different uses of flexible working practices. While fathers spend substantially more time working, mothers work only a little more overtime, primarily because they are more likely to be balancing work with extra childcare duties. The report concludes that while flexible working should help to balance work and family life, in practice it can also reflect and cement traditional gender roles. The report calls for greater clarity and more onus on fathers to take a greater responsibility for childcare, although it notes that flexible working does not offer workers of either sex more free time. More →

Fathers seek more flexible working, but remain concerned about impact on career

Fathers seek more flexible working, but remain concerned about impact on career

As more and more women are staying in the workplace after having children – and often full time – parents are demanding greater access to flexible working, but dads are still being held back by old-fashioned policies and fears that their employer will react negatively to requests to work flexibly, according to two new Workingmums.co.uk surveys.

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Many fathers are unaware of their parental leave rights

Many fathers are unaware of their parental leave rights

Nearly half (46 percent) of working fathers are unaware they are entitled to take shared parental leave on the arrival of a child, according to new research. The survey, conducted by Aviva, also claims that one in 10 dads (11 percent) took no time off whatsoever when their most recent child arrived. Businesses are therefore being urged to do more to make sure their male staff know their rights, to enable them to spend precious time with their newborn or adopted children. Crucially, the survey of UK parents with dependent children found that 86 percent of fathers would have taken more time off at the arrival of their children, but felt restricted by financial factors and employer constraints.

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Fathers Day offers a chance to ponder the disadvantages faced by many working dads

Fathers Day offers a chance to ponder the disadvantages faced by many working dads

Father’s Day – a day when fathers up and down the UK are supposed to feel valued – whether it’s hand print cards from their 2-year old, a pair of socks from their teenager or BBQ accessories from their fully-grown son or daughter. Fathers looking to the government for an offering will be disappointed. Its response to the Women & Equalities Select Committee’s excellent recommendations on fathers and the workplace is the equivalent of a nicely wrapped box with very little in it. For self-employed fathers, the box appears to be empty.

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Third of fathers lack access to flexible working arrangements, claims study

Third of fathers lack access to flexible working arrangements, claims study

Almost a third of working fathers in the UK lack access to flexible working arrangements, new research says. The British Sociological Association’s annual conference in Newcastle heard this week that 30 percent of employed fathers surveyed could not work part-time, have flexible employment hours or work in a job share. The rate for women without flexible working was lower –10 percent, the researchers, from the UCL Institute of Education, the University of East Anglia, and the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) found.

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Working fathers are being let down by workplace policies, claims Government report

Working fathers are being let down by workplace policies, claims Government report

The Government’s Women and Equalities Committee has published its report on fathers in the workplace. Its main conclusion is that current policies supporting fathers in the workplace do not deliver what they promise, despite good intentions and this is particularly the case for less well-off fathers. It claims that the Government must reform workplace policies to ensure they meet the needs of the 21st century family and to better support working dads in caring for their children, say MPs. The report concludes that the right to request flexible working has not created the necessary cultural change and the Government itself admitted to the inquiry that its flagship shared parental leave scheme will not meet its objective for most fathers.

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