Dad’s the word
The prospective 'Dad Strike' in the UK, demanding better paternity leave, reveals a critical and often overlooked barrier to progress on gender equity: the system isn’t working for men either.
From day one of parenthood, financial and organisational structures make it difficult for many fathers to be active caregivers. This affects not only family dynamics but also long-term workforce participation, expectations, and outcomes.
For years, a focus on women was essential—there was no other way to get things moving. But real progress now means shifting from working with women to working on the system they work in. The Dad Strike shows that people’s thinking may be shifting and highlights that the outdated approach to parenthood, and the structures that come with it, limit everyone.
I have long advocated that having men in the room is critical to progress for all. But it is the nature of their involvement that matters: not simply as allies, nor as observers, but as full participants in conversations about work, care, and leadership. When they’re absent, we miss crucial perspectives and lose momentum for change that could benefit all.
The ‘Dad Strike’ is a timely reminder of what structural inequity looks like. The UK has one of the least generous paternity leave policies in Europe. In 2025, you cannot see this through any other lens, than one which reinforces the outdated assumption that caregiving is women’s work and that men’s primary role is to earn. It’s a policy that short-changes families, perpetuates workplace cultures that reward presence over participation and makes assumptions over agency.
Smart organisations, some of which we are fortunate to work with, already recognise this and are ahead of the majority of businesses. They are thinking systemically and they are engaging men, not out of obligation but based on the understanding that when you broaden the frame, new solutions emerge.
Equal parental leave, for example, doesn’t just support women’s careers- it gives men a legitimate stake in the caregiving conversation, disrupting old norms and creating space for shared progress.
We can see what happens when this works.
Companies like Aviva and Deloitte - whose parental policies are more inclusive - report measurable improvements in retention, engagement and equity. But there's something more: men who return from meaningful parental leave often bring with them a deeper understanding of what structural barriers feel like and a stronger commitment to challenging them.
The pushback against DEI may dominate headlines right now, but it could prove to be the catalyst we need. By bringing men more deliberately into the room, not just to listen, but to contribute—we have a chance to make equity efforts broader, deeper, and more durable.
This isn’t about fixing individuals. It’s about designing a better system. And that starts by acknowledging that the system isn’t working for everyone—including men.
.png?upscale=true&width=1200&upscale=true&name=Copy%20of%20OnBalance%20(1920%20x%201080%20px).png)
