Dentsu Aegis Network has launched enhanced shared parental pay for working parents.
The new policy, which is available for all UK staff following a qualifying period, mirrors the advertising organisation’s current maternity and adoption leave offerings, entitling co-parents, regardless of gender, to take up to 20 weeks of paid leave. It is available to staff across all the organisation’s brands in the UK and will roll out to new acquisitions in 2017.
Dentsu Aegis introduced the initiative as part of its drive towards a more equal, inclusive and diverse workplace. An internal staff survey, which revealed that a quarter of staff have caring responsibilities, prompted the review into the policies available.
The enhanced shared parental pay policy will operate in conjunction with a group coaching programme for expectant parents. This is designed to help staff prepare for parental leave, as well as help them manage the transition back to work once their leave has ended.
Managers are also invited to undertake separate group coaching sessions to ensure they have the skills required to support and retain working parents within their teams.
Paula Cunnington (pictured), HR director at Dentsu Aegis Network, said: “We’ve taken some big steps in the last year to create the kind of workplace where equality and diversity thrives, most recently with the launch of our first [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender] network, &PROUD.
“Matching shared parental pay to our maternity and adoption offering is a key part of that journey and I’m very proud to see us leading the industry in this area and implementing this at group level.”