November 11, 2013, by Kelly Cookson
UK SMEs and business advisers on current maternity and paternity rights
The Haydn Green Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship runs two online UK business surveys: UK Business Barometer (UKBB) and UK Business Adviser Barometer (UKBAB). The results of the surveys are instantly processed and posted on their respective websites.
In the September 2013 survey, UK SMEs and business advisers were questioned about current maternity and paternity rights.
The responses from UK SMEs were as follows:
| Do you feel that current maternity rights are fair and practical for SMEs? | |
| Yes | 28.6% |
| No | 54.3% |
| Not sure | 10% |
| Don’t know | 7.1% |
| Do you feel that current paternity rights are fair and practical for SMEs? | |
| Yes | 21.4% |
| No | 52.9% |
| Not sure | 15.7% |
| Don’t know | 10% |
| Is the prospect of supporting employees throughout maternity and paternity leave a concern to your business? | |
| Yes | 64.3% |
| No | 18.6% |
| Not sure | 2.9% |
| Not applicable | 14.3% |
| Would you be wary of employing young women due to concerns about prospective maternity leave? | |
| Very concerned | 27.1% |
| Moderately concerned | 25.7% |
| Slightly concerned | 21.4% |
| Not concerned at all | 17.1% |
| Not applicable | 8.6% |
Alasdair Stamps of BioPartner UK commented: “ Despite the argument that people might only have babies to get state support, I believe that properly managed maternity/paternity support by the state, with no involvement or obligation by private companies, aside from voluntary contributions by firms that can afford it, would actually cost the taxpayer less. No one is going to get rich on maternity/paternity support and the advantages in terms of maintaining opportunities for parents and growth prospects for SMEs far outweighs any perceived unfairness.”
UK business advisers were asked about their experience of maternity and paternity rights:
| Do you feel that current maternity rights are fair and practical for SMEs? | |
| Yes | 25% |
| No | 55.4% |
| Not sure | 12% |
| Don’t know | 7.6% |
| Do you feel that current paternity rights are fair and practical for SMEs? | |
| Yes | 17.4% |
| No | 58.7% |
| Not sure | 17.4% |
| Don’t know | 6.5% |
| In your experience, are SMEs concerned by the prospect of supporting employees throughout maternity and paternity leave? | |
| Yes | 89.1% |
| No | 3.3% |
| Not sure | 4.3% |
| Don’t know | 3.3% |
| In your experience, are SMEs wary of employing young women due to concerns about prospective maternity leave? | |
| Very concerned | 37% |
| Moderately concerned | 35.9% |
| Slightly concerned | 22.8% |
| Not concerned at all | 1.1% |
| Don’t know | 3.3% |
Christopher Betson has a positive view: “It occurs to me that maternity rights have been a very effective recruitment campaign for ‘women returners’ into the small and micro business sector.”
More information about the UK Business Barometer (UKBB) and UK Business Adviser Barometer (UKBAB), including results and analyses, can be found on the web at www.ukbb.ac and www.ukbab.ac Businesses and advisers wishing to contribute as panellists on the project can register via the websites.
The UK Business Barometer has a group on LinkedIn and can be followed on Twitter @UKBB_UoN
More information is available from Kelly Cookson on 0115 846 6860, kelly.cookson@nottingham.ac.uk
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