Great Britain: John Lewis Partnership introduces equal parental leave for all its employees

Six months of parental leave for all staff at the John Lewis Partnership group, regardless of the gender of the parent or the conditions of the child’s arrival. On 10 June the employee-owned retailer became the first major UK retailer to announce equal parental leave that will be paid for 14 weeks at 100%, followed by 12 weeks at 50%, and will become effective from this autumn. To be eligible, staff must have been working at the company for a year. Chair of the John Lewis Partnership, Dame Sharon White said, “As an employee-owned business, equality matters to us.” The group, which employs 80,000 between its John Lewis department stores and Waitrose supermarkets, is atypical in so far as all its employees, known as ‘partners’, benefit from shares in the company and receive bonuses as such. “We want to be there for our partners to support them in important life moments, whether that’s stepping into the world of work for the first time, or becoming a parent,” Dame White added. In addition to the parental leave, staff will also be offered two-weeks paid leave and psychological support if they suffer a loss during pregnancy. John Lewis Partnership did not give details of this additional policy, which echoes similar measures recently adopted by several British companies (c.f. article No.12492 and No.12521).