Beverage company Molson Coors has announced a new equal parent leave policy which will entitle new parents up to 52 weeks of leave regardless of gender or path to parenthood.
The company, which brews brands including Coors and Carling, employs more than 2,200 people across Ireland and the UK including at the Franciscan Well Brewery in Cork
Molson Coors has said all new parents will be offered up to 52 weeks of leave, 26 of which are fully paid, and a further 12 weeks fully paid for neonatal care, if needed.
In addition, new parents will qualify for up to 10 paid days, known as 'keeping in touch days', as well as paid antenatal appointments.
It said its employees that choose to take more than 26 weeks leave when they become parents, will qualify for a phased return to work for the first four weeks, working 80% of their hours while receiving 100% of their pay.
By introducing the new policy to enhance parental leave for all employees irrespective of gender, Molson Coors said it is aiming to kick-out the ‘secondary carer’ label often given to those that can’t take more time away from the workplace.
The company is one of the very few employers in Ireland to offer some form of gender-neutral parent leave that removes the principle of a primary and secondary carer.
It is particularly rare amongst manufacturing companies, which tend to have significantly higher numbers of men in their workforce.
Laura Lee, Managing Director, Ireland at Molson Coors Beverage Company, said, "As leading employer in Ireland, we’re always looking at ways to drive for more gender diversity at every level of our business, and to create a more inclusive and equitable work experience for everyone. Our new Equal Parent Leave policy is a really important next step to achieving those ambitions.
"At its most simple and powerful level, Equal Parent Leave recognises that parents should be able to choose how to care for their young children. One parent taking on the lion’s share of caring for children may be the right thing to do for many families, but we want it to be a choice – a positive choice that isn’t based on gender stereotypes or having to decide who is the primary or secondary carer.
"As a business that is part of a typically male-dominated industry, we have an opportunity to help breakdown those stereotypes and help to challenge the ‘secondary carer’ label -which is often taken on by new fathers. We want to make it easier for fathers to be able to take more time away from work as a new parent, because we know that by doing that, we are also helping to give mother’s more choice and families the opportunity to start that parenting journey on a more equal footing."
