An Australian clothing business has been getting attention for its employee leave policy, which gives parents an extra two weeks off a year until their child turns 12. But could it happen here?
Dissh said it was giving the leave to help parents with "all the important stuff", such as school transitions, "meaningful parenting moments and milestones" and illness.
"This is how we modernise work," it posted on its Linkedin. "This is how we raise the standard."
Employment law expert Alison Maelzer, of Hesketh Henry, said it might seem at first glance that the Human Rights Act would make similar policies in New Zealand unlawful, because it does not allow discrimination on the grounds of family status.
But she said it allowed for the preferential treatment of someone who had responsibility for the care of children or dependants.
"Any policy giving additional leave would need to be based on that employee having responsibility for the care of children, rather than just being a parent.
"While this may provide a potential legal defence for the employer, a policy of this nature is likely to be controversial, and could cause resentment or division in the workplace. Employers might want to consider how they could a make a policy like this more inclusive, or how they may be able to balance this benefit for those employees who do not have children."
Alastair Espie, an employment law specialist at Duncan Cotterill, agreed the law made room for it.
"Although treating an employee...
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