The New Dad: Take Your Leave. Perspectives on Paternity Leave From Fathers, Leading Organizations, and Global Policies.

Part of a series that explores the changing role of fathers, this report explores paternity and parental level for fathers. It explores what fathers think about the issue of paternity leave, how important it is, how much time off do they need, the level of pay do they expect, what employers are doing to support fathers with regards to paternity level, and how government policies on leave taking differ from country to country. Information was gathered from a survey of more than 1,000 fathers employed by 286 different organizations across a wide range of industries and 30 companies. Findings indicate 89% of fathers thought it was important for employers to provide paid paternity or paid parental leave, about three-quarters of the fathers recommended that 2-4 weeks of paid paternity leave be provided, a majority said they would not make use of paternity leave or parental leave unless at least 70% of their salaries were paid, and 45% said compensation needed to be 100%; and fathers cited the importance of flexible work options to facilitate their continued caregiving role with their children. The report highlights innovative practices to support fathers and provides an overview of what is happening globally when it comes to paternity leave and parental leave for fathers. Throughout the report examples of how governments around the world are addressing the needs of fathers are spotlighted. 48 references.