Geely's Volvo Cars has launched a paid gender-neutral parental leave policy for all sales company employees in the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East and Africa), offering six months of leave with 80% pay.
The new policy is said to be more generous and inclusive than most existing national parental leave policies in Europe and claimed to be the first of its kind in the car industry.
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The new policy was inspired by national legislation in the automaker's home market of Sweden where parental leave arrangements are already generous.
The automaker said the EMEA parental leave policy was a pilot scheme that "possibly could lead to a global roll-out of a similar paid parental leave policy for all 43,000 employees around the globe".
The EMEA scheme will help to identify and solve any practical obstacles apparent from rolling out such a scheme outside Sweden.
"The EMEA initiative is one of several activities with the aim to create an inclusive culture and attract and retain a diverse set of people," said Hanna Fager, 'Head of People Experience' (aka HR).
"It improves life-work balance, boosts family time and fits with a progressive, human-centric company."
Most countries in the EMEA region offer some form of paid parental leave but there is often a large discrepancy between what is available for mothers and fathers – often to the disadvantage of fathers.
Volvo said equal parental leave "offers the potential to boost labour market and career opportunities for women by reducing career and pay gaps".
Emulating the Swedish approach, the Volvo Cars policy is gender-neutral and also applies to same-sex parents and parents of adopted children.
The automaker said it aims to position itself as an employer of choice by offering one of the most generous and inclusive paid parental leave packages.
"We need to be a truly attractive employer to be able to deliver on our ambitious growth plans," added Fager.
