A new Irish Equal Parent Leave Policy has been introduced in Molson Coors Beverage Company, which will offer all new parents up to 52 weeks of parental leave.
The policy will see all parents entitled to parental leave regardless of gender or path to parenthood.
Of the 52 weeks of leave on offer, 26 will be fully paid.
Parents who take more than 26 weeks of leave will qualify for a phased return to work for the first four weeks.
This will see employees working 80% of their hours while receiving full pay as they transition back to work.
In addition to this, the makers of Coors and Carling will offer another 12 weeks paid leave for neonatal care, if needed.
Employees can also take up to 10 paid ‘keeping in touch days’ to support the transition back to work, as well as paid antenatal appointments.
The initiative by the company, which employs more than 2,200 people across the UK and Ireland, aims to eradicate the ‘secondary carer’ label often assigned to parents who cannot take additional time away from the workplace.
‘Break Down These Stereotypes’
The managing director of Molson Coors Laura Lee noted the move as an important step in the company’s goals towards creating an inclusive and equitable workplace.
Lee said, “At its most simple and powerful level, Equal Parent Leave recognises that parents should be able to choose how to care for their young children.
“One parent taking on the lion’s share of caring for children may be the right thing to do for many families, but we want it to be a choice – a positive choice that isn’t based on gender stereotypes or having to decide who is the primary secondary carer.
“As a business that is part of a typically male-dominated industry, we have an opportunity to help break down these stereotypes and help to challenge the ‘secondary carer’ label – which is often taken on by new fathers,” she said.
This policy is the latest by Molson Coors in its ambition to become a more inclusive employer.
Last year, it scrapped CVs for certain roles to encourage a more diverse pool of applicants.
In 2019, it also established ‘life leave’ which offers employees two extra weeks of annual leave for significant life events such as moving house.
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