London - Fathers have cut down the time they spend at work because of the need to look after their children, a study has found.
More than half of married fathers are now not prepared to work in the evening, and the number who will not work at weekends has almost doubled in a decade.
Nearly three quarters said that their family responsibilities sometimes prevent them giving the time they should to their job.
The report, by social research group NatCen, revealed most families now rely on two incomes, increasing the pressure on fathers to share childcare duties. It found that only just over a fifth of families still follow the traditional model of a working father and a full-time mother.
NatCen’s study was based on results from the Labour Force Survey, which questioned 44 000 British households. It found the average working week of a married father in full-time employment dropped from 47 to 45 hours between 2001 and 2011.
The number of fathers who never work in the evening jumped from 33 percent in 2001 to 52 percent in 2011. Three quarters now never work nights, up from 66 percent, and 45 percent never work at the weekend, compared with 26 percent in 2001.
Researchers said it showed that fathers want to spend more time caring for children and that there is “a greater level of equality in economic provisioning between parents”.
But they said fathers are often still allowing work commitments to interfere with their childcare role. Dr Svetlana Speight of NatCen said: “Many fathers allow their job to undermine their family life. There are lessons we can learn from countries like the Netherlands where fathers appear to have a better work-life balance.”
Other analysts suggested fathers spend less time at work because they are forced to do so. Patricia Morgan, author of The Marriage Files, said: “This is self-fulfilling prophecy. Because of the way the tax and benefit system is set up, mothers have no choice but to work and fathers have no choice but to look after families.
“Nobody has asked parents what they want. Only one choice is acceptable – fathers must work less and mothers must work more. This change in the way fathers work is imposed.” - Daily Mail