Hong Kong paternity leave increase to come into force next Friday but unions and pan-democrats want it extended further
- The new allotted leave is five days instead of the current three. Labour activists want seven or even 14 days in the next review
- Expectant fathers must give three months’ notice to their employers before they take their leave
New fathers in Hong Kong will enjoy more paid time off with their newborn children starting from next Friday, when mandated paternity leave is extended from three to five days.
The government announced the starting date of the extended paternity leave on Friday as unions said the leave should be further increased to seven or 14 days in the next review.
A spokesperson from the Labour Department reminded male employees of the statutory requirement to give three-months’ notice to employers before taking the leave.
For those who have applied for the three-day paternity leave before the extension takes effect, the spokesperson said employees would need to give five days’ notice to their bosses before they can take the extra two days.
Last October, the city’s legislature raised the statutory entitlement to five days, after the pan-democratic camp’s amendment to further increase it to seven days was voted down.
Labour minister Law Chi-kwong had threatened to withdraw the entire proposal if the counterproposals were passed.