When it comes to family, there is no one-size-fits-all. For LGBTQ+ parents and carers, the journey to parenthood is as diverse as our community itself. Our families are formed in many different ways, and our needs around parental leave are just as unique.
Our community includes lesbian mums, gay dads, bisexual parents, and transgender or gender-diverse parents. Each group has different experiences, and their journeys to parenthood reflect that diversity. According to the 2021 Australian Census, 78,500 same-sex couples live together in Australia. Of these couples, at a minimum, around 18% have children living with them. This is not an accurate reflection of the number of families in our community, given LGBTQ+ people have historically been excluded from accurate data collection by the ABS.
Flexible parental leave for all family types
In our Rainbow Families community, our families are created through various paths, including surrogacy, fostering or adoption, home insemination, IVF, and co-parenting arrangements. Each path is different, with its own challenges, timelines, and emotional journeys. Because of this, workplaces must offer parental leave that acknowledges these different family-building experiences rather than trying to apply a single approach that may not fit our community, or others.
Unlike traditional family models, LGBTQ+ families aren’t shaped by the old ideas of who takes on the “primary” or “secondary” carer roles. These roles don’t align with how our families work and policies that use these outdated terms tend to exclude us. Employers can’t assume who will be the primary caregiver or how our family responsibilities will be shared.
Breaking down barriers to inclusive parental leave
Parental leave policies need to be flexible and inclusive of all families. This means making sure they cover not just biological births but also fostering, adoption, and surrogacy. Families shouldn’t have to fight to prove they’re entitled to parental leave just because their path to parenthood looks different to more traditional family structures.
While many Australian workplaces have made great strides in making parental leave policies more inclusive, we still hear from LGBTQ+ families who face barriers when accessing these entitlements. Too often, the problem isn’t the policy itself—it’s that managers don’t fully understand how these policies apply to the diverse ways our families are formed. This can leave parents in our community struggling to access their rightful leave.
For example, if fostering, adoption, or surrogacy aren’t specifically mentioned in a parental leave policy, managers might mistakenly think the policy doesn’t apply to those cases. LGBTQ+ employees are then put in the difficult position of having to educate their managers or advocate for themselves at a time when they should be focused on preparing for a new child.
Leading the way with Rainbow Families’ training and resources
As Rainbow Families‘ resources and capacity grow, we look forward to taking a leading role in providing specific training around LGBTQ+ family structures in the workplace. Our goal is to fill the current gap by offering training that helps employers understand the unique needs of LGBTQ+ families.
Notably, our resource Family Diversity and Inclusion Training Program helps educate employers about creating environments where LGBTQ+ parents and their children feel respected and included.
DCA members can hear more about LGBTIQ+ parental leave by watching the recording of DCA’s Breaking Dad: accelerating the take up of men sharing parental leave event.
Note: The author of this blog uses LGBTQ+ in alignment with their own organisation and/or experience.
Ashley Scott is the Executive Officer and one of the founders of Rainbow Families – a charity that supports, connects and empowers LGBTQ+ parents and their families. As a proud gay dad, in 2012 when Ashley’s eldest daughter was born, he was shocked at the lack of support for LGBTQ+ parents. In 2015 Ashley came together with other queer parents to create Rainbow Families. Since that time Ashley and Rainbow Families have supported thousands of parents across Australia to be their best, authentic selves.
Additional resources
- DCA’s Parental Leave resources page
- DCA’s LGBTIQ+ resource page
- DCA’s Families and Work event
- Rainbow Families’ Diversity Training page
- Rainbow Families’ resources for families page
- The Equality Project’s Australian LGBTIQA+ Policy Guide
- Australian Human Rights Commission’s Same-Sex: Same Entitlements report
- Respect@Work’s LGBTIQ+ People page
- Equality Australia