Celebrating employers who are supporting working dads

Supporting working dads and promoting equal parenting is essential to workplace gender equality, increasing women’s representation at senior levels and eradicating the motherhood penalty.

The large disparity in the gender pay gap starts when the first baby is born into a family and for us to address this, we need to support and encourage dads to share the load in the months and years after their baby is born. This can be achieved through good parental leave policies and flexible working. Importantly, this needs to be underpinned and led from the top, with leadership that create and nurture a culture where all fathers are encouraged and supported to be active parents at home.

Supporting working dads is also essential to improving mental health and wellbeing. We know 10% of new dads will suffer from some symptoms of post-natal depression in the first 6 months of becoming a new father and 39% of expectant dads are concerned about their mental health. The opportunity for a father to be at home to bond with their new baby and support their partner is integral to maintaining mental health, wellbeing and relationships. And it’s not just in the first year that fathers need support, research tells us that parents will experience more mental health problems than non-parents.

Supporting working dads also has huge implications for the outcomes for our children. The research shows us that consistent and nurturing paternal involvement results in better outcomes in regards to children’s resilience, education and wellbeing.