ABSTRACT
The main employer organizations are the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and the National Federation of Self Employed and Small Businesses (FSB), together with smaller but relevant British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). Business is thus clearly split along a large-small firm dimension when it comes to the issue of further expansions of paid parental leave. If business could swallow the 1999 reforms, the 2001 Employment Bill, which introduced paid paternity leave and extended the length of paid maternity leave, was too much. The CBI was concerned about the increasing cost for business, but restricted their criticism to highlight the negative costs for small firms and specific issues associated with implementation of the reform. The FSB organizes more exclusively among small firms, and makes more effort to organize the self-employed. BCC is smaller than both CBI and FSB in terms of members, with membership from small and medium-sized firms.
