Netflix and paternity leave! Have companies ushered in a Golden Age of Paternity Leave? Not quite yet.
We seem to be living in a sudden Golden Age of Paternity Leave.
In the past two months, I’ve seen glowing news reports of major, influential companies such as Virgin Atlantic, IBM, Ernst & Young, Twitter, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, T-Mobile, Facebook, Bank of America, and Microsoft adopting or significantly expanding their paternity leave policies. The latest and greatest announcement is of Netflix and paternity leave- both new moms and new dads can take up to a year of unlimited paid parental leave. That’s practically Swedish of them.
I am thrilled by this rapid progress, and especially by Netflix’s policy. However, during this exciting sweep of announcements, it is easy to forget that the adoption of paid paternity leave is just a first step in creating societal awareness of the importance of involved fatherhood, and the need for corporate cultures to assist men in their work-family challenges. The good folks at The Greater Good Science Center (part of University of California- Berkeley), asked me to write an article about the wave of paternity leave and what working dads and managers can do to build on this momentum. Please click on the picture below to read the entire article.
Click to read my entire article on Netflix, paternity leave and how we can accelerate change
Leaders must lead, but we can all play our part in moving culture change along. It’s time we all created the culture change we wish to see. After all, when working dads are supported, families are stronger.
What do you think about Netflix and paternity leave? Other corporate announcements? The work left to be done? Any stories to share? Let’s discuss in the comments.
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