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paid maternity leave - the business case
attract and retain talented staff
quick facts - paid parental leave statistics
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EOWA's
Annual Survey 2005 revealed that: |
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46% of reporting organisations provided
paid maternity leave, compared with 23% in 2001.
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32% of reporting organisations provided
paid paternity leave, compared with 15% in 2001.
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Reporting organisations in the Electricity, Gas &
Water Supply (93%), Education (80%), Personal & Other
Services (61%) and Communication Services (60%) industries
were most likely to provide paid maternity leave.
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Among those
organisations that did provide paid maternity leave, the
duration of paid leave most commonly provided was 6 weeks
(40%), followed by 12 weeks (19%), then 8 weeks (10%).
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88% of organisations offering
paid maternity leave reported providing 6 weeks or more paid
maternity leave, while only 5% offered
fewer than 4 weeks of paid leave.
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Figure 1. Provision of paid maternity leave by surveyed
EOWA reporting organisations in 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005. (NB.
Paid maternity leave data were not collected in 2002.) |
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The 2005
Australian Bureau of Statistics Pregnancy
and Employment Transitions Survey found the
following:
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The type of
maternity leave most commonly taken by mothers upon the
birth of a child was was unpaid (71.4% of new mothers). This
compares with 46.5% of new mothers who accessed paid
maternity leave.
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56% of
professional women took a period of paid maternity leave,
compared to only 8% of women employed in elementary
clerical, sales and service positions.
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76% of women
employed in the public sector accessed paid maternity leave,
compared to 25% of women working in the private sector.
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paid maternity leave: the business case
In 2003, the EOWA Annual Survey found that the retention
rate of female employees that had taken maternity leave was 67% at
organisations where paid maternity leave was provided. This retention
rate was only 56% at organisations where no paid maternity leave provisions were
offered.
Employers that provide paid maternity leave provisions are signalling
their commitment to their employees. This typically translates into
increased job satisfaction, greater employee productivity and improved
employee loyalty.
Leading practice organisations know the value to their business
bottom-line of an important retention strategy such as paid maternity leave
and regard it as a core to a suite of flexible workplace practices.
Paid maternity leave is increasingly seen by employers to benefit their
organisation by:
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Increasing the number of employees returning to work after
maternity leave
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Reducing recruitment and training costs
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Improving staff morale and productivity
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Providing a cost-effective means of retaining skilled staff;
and
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Improving organisational efficiency through the benefits of
long service, eg. institutional memory, industry knowledge,
networks and contacts.
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benchmarking: eowa employer of choice
for women citation
Since 2001, the
EOWA Employer of Choice for Women citation
(EOCFW) has been recognising
organisations as ‘leading practice organisations’ in removing barriers
to advancing women in the workplace. EOWA is committed to raising the
bar, improving the workplace for women and strengthening the EOCFW brand
for recipient organisations.
Following a review of the criteria and initial consultation with
recipient organisations in 2006, it was proposed that in addition to the
existing criteria, six new pre-requisites be met by organisations before
being able to apply for the EOCFW citation in the future. The addition
of the pre-requisites addresses key areas that are recognised as
barriers to women’s equal opportunity and advancement within business.
One of these new pre-requisites is the provision of paid maternity leave
of a minimum of six weeks of paid leave after 12 months’ service,
in line with the 12 months' legislated eligibility period for accessing
unpaid maternity leave.
Paid maternity leave recognises the dual role that working women play as
contributors to the workplace and as bearers of children.
From 2008, organisations not providing at least 6 weeks
paid maternity leave will not be considered an Employer of Choice for
Women.
The 2005 EOWA Paid
Parental Leave survey revealed that 46.2% of all reporting organisations
offer paid maternity leave. 88% of organisations surveyed report 6 weeks
or more paid maternity leave, with the largest number of organisations
(40%) offering 6 weeks.
case studies
AMP was able to increase the number of women
returning from maternity leave from 50% in 1992 to 90% in 1997, which
saved the company between $50,000 and $150,000 for each woman who
returned.
ANZ
increased its paid parental leave
provision from 6 weeks to 12 weeks for the primary caregiver. Between
2004-05, the organisation reported a decrease in turnover rates and an
increase in the percentage of female employees returning from parental
leave (89.9% in 2006) and an increase in the recruitment of female
graduates.
(Source: 2006
Leading Edge Initiatives publication)
Monash University revised its paid maternity leave policy to
comprise 14 weeks at full pay and a further 38 weeks at 60% pay on a pro
rata basis. After 26 weeks' parental leave, staff on maternity leave may
choose to return to work on a part-time basis and use the outstanding
entitlement to be paid at a full salary. Additionally, where the Monash
child-care facilities are used, staff aslo have the option of requesting
that any outstanding entitlement from the 38 weeks at 60% pay be
directed towards the payment of child-care fees. As a result, the return
rate from maternity leave has improved significantly, measuring over 92%
in 2006.
(Source: 2007
Leading Edge Initiatives publication)
The return to work from parental leave rate at
NRMA increased from 32% in 1993 to 85% in 1998.
In 2005, Westpac
announced that it had enhanced its package of family-friendly policies
by doubling paid parental leave to 12 weeks from six weeks. Westpac
currently has a return to work rate following maternity leave of around
70%. They estimate that if this figure could be increased to around 80%,
it would deliver benefits to the bank in reduced turnover, equating to
millions of dollars saved.
quotes
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"While this is
a substantial investment in our people, we have done sufficient
cost-analysis to know that we reap the dividends in terms of
employee productivity, job satisfaction and retention”.
Helen Ormond,
Head of Organisational Capability, National Australia Bank
"I have been berated
by my peers in the industry for creating workplace precedents
that they perceive as too costly...The only way that other CEOs
are going to get it is with the business case. In my case, all
these family and women-friendly policies have paid huge
dividends. Our employee turnover rate is so low that we rarely -
if ever - have to advertise to recruit...On top of that, the
company's growth has averaged 20 per cent year on year, making
us a sound and profitable business."
Robert Franklin, CEO Autoliv Australia (Source:
CEOs
Unplugged)
"Before I joined,
Holden did not offer female employees maternity leave benefits.
So we introduced 14 weeks' paid maternity leave in October
2002...and since we have, the number of women who have returned
to work after taking maternity leave has jumped from 65 per cent
to 100 per cent. Offering maternity leave benefits is relatively
simple to do, and costs much less than one imagines, but what a
difference it makes to employees' perceptions."
Peter
Hanenberger, Chairman & Managing Director, GM Holden (Source:
CEOs
Unplugged) |
useful links
EOWA Paid Maternity Leave Factsheet
A useful overview of the implementation of paid
parental leave entitlements and the benefits they can bring to business.
EOWA Leading Edge Initiatives publication
Presents a wide
selection of initiatives by employers from across a variety of
industries who are maximising women's employment participation and
opportunities, including paid maternity leave offerings and the positive
outcomes these provisions can generate.
EOWA Employer of Choice for Women
Benchmark your organisation against the practices of the leading edge
organisations that have been awarded this citation, enabling them to
differentiate themselves from their competitors
and achieve public acknowledgment of their efforts in the area of equal
opportunity for women.
2005 EOWA Paid Paternity Leave Survey
2005 EOWA Paid Parental Leave Survey
2004 EOWA
Paid Maternity Leave Survey
Download some of our most recent survey reports which
reveal findings on employers' provision of paid parental leave.
Factsheet: Why
family-friendly policies are good for business
A factsheet prepared by the Department of Employment and Workplace
Relations, this document outlines the benefits to be gained by
businesses in implementing family-friendly initiatives such as paid
maternity leave.
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