Tradesmen hand condoms to politicians in paternity campaign
Construction workers will descend on Westminster to hand out condoms to MPs as part of a campaign for paternity leave for the self-employed.
Tradesmen from across the UK will be dishing out the condoms branded with “this lasts longer than our paternity leave” to draw attention to their cause.
Self-employed fathers do not get any paternity leave or pay while self-employed mothers can claim up to 39 weeks.
The initiative, backed by campaign groups On The Tools and The Dad Shift and a number of Labour MPs, is pushing for the government to introduce paternity for self-employed fathers.
Working men across the country are “left totally unsupported in one of the most important and challenging times of their lives,” according to George Gabriel, co-founder of The Dad Shift.
He said: “It’s unacceptable that working blokes are shafted when their babies arrive.”
Statutory paternity for those in regular employment is either £187.18 a week, or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower, plus two weeks’ leave.
The proposed changes could cost between £13.6 million and £37.7 million each year to extend paternity leave to self-employed fathers.
One in three fathers working in construction did not take time off when their last child was born, with many claiming financial cost stopped them from doing so, according to a poll by On The Tools.
Labour MPs back campaign
Alistair Strathern, who co-chairs the Labour Group for Men and Boys, backed the calls to close the loophole.
Strathern said: “It’s an absolute joke that self-employed dads get less time off to get to know their little one than it took to conceive them.”
Amanda Martin, the Portsmouth MP who co-chairs the Labour Group for Men and Boys said: “Self-employed tradesmen build our homes, fix our heating and keep our lights on. We should be able to offer them the basic dignity of being able to welcome their child into the world without facing financial ruin.”
Lee Wilcox, chief executive of On The Tools, said: “Dads in the trades, like every new parent, want to show up for those precious first few weeks for their partner and new baby without being left out of pocket for doing so.”