M&S and Tesco Offer Six Weeks' Paternity Leave, UK Study Finds

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Marks & Spencer and Tesco are among the retailers leading the way on paternity leave, according to new research that points to a widening gap between retail and sectors such as construction, manufacturing and agriculture. Both companies pay six weeks in full to new fathers, far above the statutory two-week minimum.

The figures were compiled by the campaign group The Dad Shift and Ian Dinwiddy of Inspiring Dads. They show the two retailers among the most generous UK blue-chip companies listed on the FTSE 100. Privately owned Ikea, Lego and Virgin Media O2 also offer more weeks of fully paid leave to new fathers.

M&S raised its offer from two to six weeks at full pay in 2024. Employee Joe Erskine took the new leave when his second child was born 17 months ago. "Being able to take six weeks' paid paternity leave, flexibly, made a huge difference to me and my family, giving me the time to support my partner and settle into being a new parent," he said.

Enhanced leave at Asda, Waitrose and Lidl in recent years means that just five employers are responsible for upgrading parental leave for nearly 650,000 workers.

Where the gap shows

The Dad Shift found that construction employs around one in 10 working men but accounts for only about one in 15 recipients of statutory paternity pay. One possible reason is that some construction workers are self-employed and have no entitlement to paid paternity leave, as is the case for many agricultural workers.

JCB offers two weeks at full pay, up from the three days it previously offered. Rolls-Royce, whose workforce is more than 80% male, also offers two weeks fully paid.

Employed fathers in the UK are entitled to two weeks of statutory paternity leave paid at £194.32 a week, or 90% of average weekly earnings if that is lower. That totals less than half the national living wage. Campaigners say the UK ranks 40th out of 43 OECD countries and has the least generous entitlement in Europe.

Many companies top up the statutory offer to full salary, in some cases for a longer period. Campaigners argue that, more than two decades after paternity leave rights were introduced in Britain, the country has fallen behind.

Pressure on the Budget

Retail businesses and the shop workers' union Usdaw held a roundtable in parliament hosted by Labour MP Connor Rand, a former Usdaw researcher. Rand said paternity leave let him bond with his son and support his partner. "Too many dads in our country can't do this. That's bad for them, bad for their partner and bad for their children. It must change," he said.

More than 100 Labour MPs have asked Andy Burnham to commit to better paternity leave in the upcoming budget. They want six weeks paid at 90% of earnings, capped at £1,200 a week, and extended to self-employed fathers. An 18-month government review of the parental leave system is expected to report later this year.

Source: The Guardian