An article examined whether fathers' long working hours were best explained by men's career stage or their parental status. Being a father, rather than career stage, predicted working longer hours, after controlling for earnings, education, and partner's work status: but being in a professional occupation predicted working longer hours for all men, irrespective of parental status.
Source: Laura Biggart and Margaret O'Brien, 'UK fathers' long work hours: career stage or fatherhood?', Fathering: A Journal of Theory, Research, and Practice about Men as Fathers, Volume 8 Number 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2010-Nov
An article examined fathers' use of family leave in Britain and the United States of America. Almost all fathers took some leave: but British fathers took more leave on average, while American fathers demonstrated a wider range of leave time.
Source: Gayle Kaufman, Clare Lyonette and Rosemary Crompton, 'Post-birth employment leave among fathers in Britain and the United States', Fathering: A Journal of Theory, Research, and Practice about Men as Fathers, Volume 8 Number 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2010-Nov
The government announced that the right to request flexible working would be extended to parents of children under the age of 18 (instead of 17), with effect from April 2011.
Source: Press release 30 September 2010, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Links: DBIS press release | BCC press release | CBI press release | IOD press release | TUC press release | Personnel Today report | Telegraph report
Date: 2010-Sep
A report called on the government to reform statutory maternity and paternity leave/pay arrangements, in order to give small businesses greater certainty over employees' family leave.
Source: Flexible Working: Small Business Solutions, Federation of Small Businesses
Links: Report | FSB press release
Date: 2010-Aug
An article examined trade union engagement with work-life balance issues and intervention strategies.
Source: Mike Rigby and Fiona O'Brien-Smith, 'Trade union interventions in work-life balance', Work, Employment and Society, Volume 24 Number 2
Links: Abstract
Date: 2010-Jun
The new Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government (formed following the general election in May 2010) published its policy programme for a five-year term of office. The programme included:
A 'significantly accelerated' reduction in the structural public deficit, with the main burden of deficit reduction borne by reduced spending rather than increased taxes, and arrangements that would protect those on low incomes from the effect of public sector pay constraint and other spending constraints.
Cuts of £6 billion to non-front line services in 2010-11, 'subject to advice from the Treasury and the Bank of England on their feasibility and advisability'. Spending would be cut on the child trust fund and tax credits for higher earners.
A full public spending review, reporting in autumn 2010.
An independent commission to review the long-term affordability of public sector pensions, while protecting accrued rights. The earnings link for uprating the basic state pension would be restored from April 2011.
The personal allowance for income tax to be increased in order to help lower- and middle-income earners. There would be a substantial increase in the allowance from April 2011, with a longer-term objective of increasing it to £10,000 per year: this would take priority over other tax cuts, including cuts to inheritance tax. Liberal Democrat MPs would be allowed to abstain on budget resolutions to introduce transferable tax allowances for married couples.
Funding for the National Health Service would increase in real terms in each year of the parliament. Overall management responsibility for the NHS would be transferred to a new independent board.
A commission would examine the future of long-term care, reporting within a year. Legislation giving free personal care to the most needy, enacted at the end of the previous Labour government, would be scrapped.
An annual limit on the number of non-European Union economic migrants admitted into the United Kingdom to live and work. Detention of children for immigration purposes would be ended.
The establishment of fixed-term (five years) parliaments. There would be a referendum on the introduction of the alternative vote system of voting in general elections. A committee would be established to bring forward proposals for a wholly or mainly elected upper chamber on the basis of proportional representation.
A referendum on further Welsh devolution.
A commission would investigate the creation of a British Bill of Rights that incorporated all existing obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights. The identity card scheme would be scrapped.
'Radical' devolution of power and greater financial autonomy to local government and community groups. There would be a 'full review' of local government finance.
Phasing out of the default retirement age. There would be a review to set the date at which the state pension age started to rise to 66, although it would not be sooner than 2016 for men and 2020 for women. Rules requiring compulsory annuitization of pension savings at 75 would be scrapped.
Replacement of all existing welfare-to-work programmes with a single programme. Jobseeker's allowance claimants facing the most significant barriers to work would be referred to the new programme immediately, rather than after 12 months. Jobseeker's allowance claimants aged under 25 would be referred to the programme after a maximum of six months.
Reform of schools in order to ensure that new providers could enter the state school system in response to parental demand. All schools would have greater freedom over the curriculum. A 'significant' premium would be introduced for disadvantaged pupils, funded by cuts from outside the schools budget.
Measures to make the police service more accountable through oversight by directly elected police commissioners. There would be a 'full review' of sentencing policy. Anonymity in rape cases would be extended to defendants.
Extension of the right to request flexible working to all employees. A 'fair pay review' in the public sector would consider how to implement a proposed '20 times' multiple limit between the highest and lowest pay rates.
Source: The Coalition: Our Programme for Government, Cabinet Office
Links: Programme | Downing Street press release | Press conference transcript | DH press release | ADASS press release | SCIE press release | Carers UK press release | Kings Fund press release | BMA press release | NASUWT press release | LGA press release | CIH press release | RTPI press release | Fawcett Society press release | Friends of the Earth press release | Community Care report (1) | Community Care report (2) | Personnel Today report | Children & Young People Now report | Pulse report | BBC report (1) | BBC report (2) | BBC report (3) | BBC report (4) | Guardian report (1) | Guardian report (2) | Guardian report (3) | Guardian report (4) | Guardian report (5) | Telegraph report | Womensgrid report
Date: 2010-May
The government published a 'strategic vision' for the further transformation of maternity services and early years services. It gave a guarantee of a personal Sure Start contact for all expectant parents, and the right for parents to ask for free childcare to fit around work and other commitments.
Source: Maternity and Early Years: Making a Good Start to Family Life, Department of Health/Department for Children, Schools and Families/Prime Minister's Strategy Unit
Links: Report | Hansard | DCSF press release | NCT press release | RCOG press release
Date: 2010-Mar
The government published a booklet that highlighted the social and economic benefits to employers and employees of implementing flexible working and other family-friendly policies for fathers.
Source: Think Fathers: How flexible working for Dads can work for your business, Department for Children, Schools and Families
Links: Booklet
Date: 2010-Mar
The government published its response to the recommendations of a taskforce on family-friendly working hours. It called on employers to do more to promote flexible working, and said that it would promote flexible working across the public sector. There would be a presumption that all public sector jobs should be advertised as available for flexible or part-time working unless there was a good business case why this was not possible.
Source: Flexibility for the Future: The Government's Response to the Recommendations of the Family Friendly Working Hours Taskforce, Department for Work and Pensions
Links: Response | Report | DWP press release
Date: 2010-Mar
A report documented the results from the second wave of research designed to assess the awareness and experiences of flexible working among working parents. Working parents perceived that asking to work flexibly could have negative consequences for themselves: one-third were concerned that it would mark them out as 'uncommitted to their job'.
Source: Penny Bowden, Flexible Working: Perceptions of Working Parents – Survey wave 2, Government Equalities Office
Links: Report
Date: 2010-Mar
An official taskforce set out recommendations for further action designed to encourage and support employers to realize the benefits of flexible working in their organization.
Source: Family Friendly Working Hours Taskforce, Flexible Working: Working for families, working for business, Department for Work and Pensions
Links: Report
Date: 2010-Mar
An article examined recent parental leave initiatives in France and the United Kingdom within the context of broader debates about family policy. In the UK the equalities lobby was important but the abstract logic of the market dominated, while in France pro-natalist policy focused on the 'working mother'.
Source: Susan Milner, '"Choice" and "flexibility" in reconciling work and family: towards a convergence in policy discourse on work and family in France and the UK?', Policy & Politics, Volume 38 Number 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2010-Feb
The government published a final impact assessment of measures in the Work and Families Act 2006 to increase paternity leave and pay.
Source: Additional Paternity Leave and Pay: Final Impact Assessment, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Links: Report
Date: 2010-Jan
A report by an all-party group of MPs said that flexible working had many advantages for both employers and their employees, but that the possible extension of the right to request flexible working to everyone could put a significant strain on small and medium enterprises.
Source: Flexible Working: Challenges for business, All-Party Parliamentary Small Business Group
Links: Report
Date: 2010-Jan
A report by an all-party group of MPs said that the government should legislate to extend the right to request flexible working to all employees, and that there should be a move towards a more gender-neutral system of parental leave. It also recommended that the government should provide stronger support for older workers, and abolish the statutory default retirement age.
Source: Achieving Intergenerational Fairness in Employment Policies and Practice, Intergenerational Futures All Party Parliamentary Group
Links: Report
Date: 2010-Jan
The government announced (following consultation) plans to give parents more choice and flexibility in how they used maternity and paternity leave. From April 2011, new fathers would be able to take advantage of additional paternity leave and pay during the second six months of the child's life, if the mother wished to return to work with maternity leave outstanding.
Source: Press release 28 January 2010, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Links: DBIS press release | TUC press release | CBI press release | NCT press release | Conservative Party press release | People Management report | BBC report
Date: 2010-Jan