Paternity leave and pay carries qualifying conditions. Employees are not automatically entitled to enjoy paternity rights; they must be either the biological father or expect to have responsibility for the child's upbringing, which means paternity rights also apply to female members of staff in same-sex couples. Additionally, paternity rights apply to employees in adoption cases, whereby both men and women can be eligible for leave and pay. In addition to the conditions relating to an employee's relationship to the child, employees must have been employed for a requisite period of continuous service before they meet the criteria for paternity rights.

The different conditions mean it is easy to find the complex maze of paternity rights overwhelming. For this reason, we recommend that all companies have a paternity leave policy to ensure that both you and your employees understand how paternity rights work in practice. A well drafted policy will help you manage an employee's absence by making the qualification conditions clear so staff can easily check whether they are eligible and set strict notification rules to ensure you have adequate notice to plan employee absence cover.

A paternity rights policy can be incorporated into your staff handbook or be a stand-alone document. If you fail to comply with paternity rights you run the risk of being brought before a tribunal, which could prove costly, time-consuming and disruptive. For more information on paternity rights, or any of our other employment law services, please contact us, we would be delighted to help.