The pandemic has required employers to flex their policies to support working parents who are trying to balance work and childcaring responsibilities. At the same time, there has been a general trend of increasing rights for working parents, and the pandemic is likely to drive a number of these policies and working practices forward.
In this new episode, recorded just before the latest lockdown and a return to homeschooling for many families, we discuss:
- What’s a socially and politically acceptable way of managing working parents during the pandemic and moving forward?
- How far does the law require employers go to identify those who are struggling and need more support?
- What can we learn from the historic uptake of initiatives like shared parental leave, and should childcaring be a protected characteristic under the Equality Act?
- How has the gender balance in childcaring during the pandemic affected employees and the risk of a claim for direct or indirect sex discrimination?
- Is the UK’s legal framework for family friendly policies keeping pace with societal trends?
In our news section, we cover:
- New research from TLT that shows an increase in employees using interim relief applications. These can be challenging and costly for employers to deal with, and many HR teams will never have come across one before.
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A recent reminder of the need to be flexible to help parents with childcare commitments – particularly where a flexible contract has already been agreed.
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Send us your ideas for future episodes – email emplawpodcast@tltsolicitors.com or tweet us using the hashtag #TLTemploymentpodcast and tagging @TLT_Employment
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