Abstract
When my husband and I were expecting our firstborn, we thought it would be a good idea for him to take time off from his job to be home to care for me and the new baby and support one another through early parenthood. There was a policy at his office for women to take time off without pay beyond the usual 6-week paid leave that included job protection for up to 1 year. We assumed that male staff could, too. Wrong. There was no equivalent policy for men. My husband’s request for unpaid parental leave was denied. The request went up the “chain of command” without success. The employee union was unable to assist him. Department Editor Denise G. Link, PhD, WHNP-BC, CNE, FAANP, FAAN, is a clinical professor at Arizona State University College of Nursing and Health Innovation in Phoenix. Denise welcomes ideas for future columns and can be reached at [email protected]
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
