The government’s new rules on paternity leave have provoked a storm of criticism from entrepreneurs and small business bodies, just hours after coming into force.
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has warned that the new legislation, which entitles new fathers to split parental leave with their partners, will “weigh down” small firms with even more red tape than they had to deal with before.
Speaking to BBC News, FSB spokesman Andrew Cave described parental leave as “the most complex area of employment law,” and warned that “layering a new piece of legislation on top of something which is already difficult for a small employer to understand is going to complicate things even more.”
Cave added the legislation could deter small firms from taking on extra staff, and stressed that “small businesses want to be flexible, but they need easy-to-understand legislation so they can avoid the pitfalls of legal problems later down the line.”
Meanwhile, almost 40% of entrepreneurs who responded to a survey from uSwitch.com, the price comparison site, said that small firms should be granted exemption from the new rules, which came into effect yesterday and apply to all British businesses.
James Constant, director of uSwitchforbusiness.com, stressed that the government’s new moratorium on red tape for small firms has made the paternity issue even more confusing; many entrepreneurs are unsure whether the law changes even apply to them.
Constant urged the government to “clarify (the confusion over the moratorium) as a matter of urgency” and added that, “if the exemption doesn't include the new paternity leave regulations, then that will be a blow."