Parent leave seen as threat to firms (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Parent leave seen as threat to firms

A QUARTER of employers see maternity leave as a business risk. According to research from AXA, one in four companies see maternity and paternity leave as a business risk, with seven per cent seeing it as a serious threat.

Not surprisingly, smaller firms are the most concerned with some 28 per cent of businesses with 20 or fewer employees saying that it was a business risk as opposed to 15 per cent of those with more than 100 staff.

Carol Anne Stewart, risk control training manager at AXA said: "Employers need to make sure that they not only cover staff on maternity or paternity leave, but also that they are aware of their legal rights and they respect these.

"If they don't, they could find themselves facing legal action.

"Some £6.2 million was awarded in employment tribunals last year, compared to £4.3m in 2003."

The Adver reported yesterday that the Government is planning to increase paternity leave to six months, to the annoyance of big business.