An increasing number of cross-industry UK companies are addressing gender inequality by introducing equal parental leave policies, under which all parents, regardless of gender, receive the same amount of leave and pay. By providing parents the flexibility and financial support to take extended time off for childcare, employers are alleviating the work vs. care trade-offs that all parents, though disproportionately women, must make.

Since 2016, 33 UK companies have publicly announced a move to an equal parental leave policy, most commonly offering six months of fully paid leave. “First movers” in this regard are Abrdn, Aviva, Bain & Company, Diageo, Goldman Sachs, John Lewis, Unicef, and Vodafone Group. As this trend continues, we expect this policy will increasingly become “table stakes” for employee benefit packages (Figure 1).