Volvo Cars has implemented a new all-gender, paid parental leave policy as of April 1.

The Family Bond policy will give all employees with at least one year’s service a total of 24 weeks of leave at 80% of their base pay, by default, and will apply to Volvo Cars’ 40 000-plus employees in all plants and offices around the globe. 

The policy applies to either parent and the leave can be taken anytime within the three first years of parenthood.

The Family Bond policy includes all legally registered parents, including adoptive, foster care and surrogate parents, as well as non-birth parents of same-sex couples. 

Some countries do not offer any paid leave to new parents, or exclude certain groups of parents, with the latter particularly true for fathers.

Volvo Car South Africa MD Greg Maruszewski says the company wanted to create a culture that supports equal parenting for all genders. 

“When parents are supported to balance the demands of work and family, it helps to close the gender gap and allows everyone to excel in their careers. 

“We have always been a family-oriented and human-centric company. 

“Through the Family Bond programme, we are demonstrating and living our values, which in turn will strengthen our brand.”

The Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region was the first in Volvo globally to introduce the leave scheme. 

“Hence, we are proud to say that the EMEA region (which includes South Africa) is leading the Volvo world in this regard,” notes Maruszewski.

He says the company is also proud to be offering its employees far more than is required by South African law. 

“According to South Africa's latest parental leave laws – which were signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa and took effect from 1 January, 2020 – all parents (including fathers, adopting parents, and surrogates) are entitled to ten days of unpaid parental leave when their children are born. 

“Thanks to our Family Bond programme, parents employed at Volvo Car South Africa won’t only get considerably more time off work, but they will also receive compensation.”

The fact that employees will receive 80% of their base pay will be especially significant to single parents in South Africa – of which there are many. 

According to research conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council and the South African Institute of Race Relations, 60% of South African children have absent fathers, and more than 40% of South African mothers are single parents.

“The leave is not mandatory,” adds Maruszewski.

“But we do want to create a culture where our people feel safe and supported to take the time should they so choose. We’re encouraging parents to take this time to bond more with their families.”