Many workplaces offer dads time off to be with their newborn children.

 

By Kevin Woo | The Asian Parent

 

Even dads need time off work to bond and help out around the house when they welcome their newborn into the world.

 

Dr. Joe Bernstein is a researcher who studies the past, present, and future evolution of the universe as well as the properties of exploding, dying stars that inform cosmology.  Complex stuff to say the least.

 

However, one of the most complex questions he’s faced in the past four years, was how to ask his boss for two weeks of paternity leave. Bernstein wasn’t sure of the outcome but he knew what he wanted – to spend time with his wife and newborn and to begin the bonding process with the baby right from the beginning.

 

Picking the right boss

 

Bernstein was lucky, he had an understanding boss who had children of his own so asking for and getting 10 days off when his daughter was born wasn’t a problem.

 

He says picking the right boss can play a large roll in determining whether or not you’ll get paternity leave.

 

“Pick your supervisors carefully,” Bernstein says.

 

“During the interview process you probably can’t ask about paternity leave directly. Instead ask how supervisors manage big projects. Do they operate in crisis mode? Does their team pull all-nighters in the days before a project is due, or do they begin working on a project right away? If manager tends to operate in crisis mode this may be a red flight and it may be difficult to get them to think and plan ahead. If they’re planners, you stand a good chance of getting time off.”

 

But most people don’t have the luxury of picking their supervisors and the amount of time they can take off is often dictated either by employment laws or individual employers.

 

Categories of paternity leave

 

Paternity time off falls into two categories: paid vs. unpaid leave, and protected (where your job is safe) vs. unprotected leave. The amount of time you take off generally dictates if your job will be there when you return.

 

Steps you can take extended family leave

 

1) Consult the company employee handbook, which should outline the organization’s family leave policies.

 

2) Plan ahead and reach out to your manager as far in advance as possible in order to give them plenty of notice.

 

3) Be clear on what you want and what compromises you’re willing to make. Do you need to take ten days off? Twenty? More than twenty? Are you willing to work from home part-time and participate in some in-office meetings that will help your manager balance the work load?

 

4) Propose some solutions on how to fill the gap whilst you’re out on leave. Have some ideas on how your work can be covered by you and your co-workers. Know who can help fill your role or how you can manage that big project from home.

 

5) Once you’re on paternity leave, hold up your end of the deal by checking in with co-workers and keep your projects moving along. Be sure to answer emails, return phone calls, and head to the office for meetings when you can.

 

Most importantly, show some flexibility with your supervisor and employer. Be willing to work part-time and participate where you can. That flexibility will go a long way toward achieving your end-goal.