New rules on maternity and paternity leave made room for dreams
In June 2021, the employees of Bruun & Hjejle were informed that everyone, regardless of gender, including co-mothers and co-fathers, would now be offered 24 weeks of paid leave in connection with childbirth. It was a major but necessary step towards equality – and unexpected news for Attorney Christopher Vitoft Ångstrøm, who was expecting his first child only three months later.
The news about the changed rules on maternity/paternity leave at Bruun & Hjejle came as a big surprise to the 29-year-old attorney.
“I remember phoning my wife, relaying the news to her. We were really pleased. It completely changed our thoughts about the leave. We were given the opportunity to dream and to focus less on planning, which was an enormous relief,” Christopher explains.
Christopher works as an attorney in our Construction team and has been employed with Bruun & Hjejle for five and a half years. Christopher is currently enjoying his paternity leave with his wife and their now six-month-old son, Storm. Christopher went on leave in mid-March and can now devote his full time to his family before returning to work in early September.
Just as huge a step for women
Bruun & Hjejle’s new leave scheme echoed not only in the legal profession but also across industries and all over the media. Ole Spiermann, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bruun & Hjejle, explained that the new scheme was an equally huge step for equality and women as it was for the male employees.
“We saw no reason why the leave entitlement should not be improved for men. Equality is not a legal right today, but it is what we, as a business and a society, should and will achieve. On paper, the male employee now has better conditions; in practice, however, conditions for women have equally improved, which we saw as a major and necessary step,” says Ole Spiermann.
The whole person
Christopher makes no secret of the fact that his job occasionally requires him to work long hours, which undeniably puts pressure on family life.
According to Christopher, the extended paternity leave gives parents the opportunity to create a healthy foundation for their future family life.
“There is definitely a need for this extended period that allows you to focus on being a family and easing into the role of parenthood − even after the leave. The partners in our law firm have really made an astute observation and acted on it,” he says.
Christopher’s wife has taken leave from her work so the small family can now spend the leave in safe surroundings in the home they moved into in February. Also, they now have the time and opportunity to jointly reflect and plan how to use the leave to get the maximum benefit from it as a family.
Quote by Christopher V. Ångstrøm
To me, this is a clear sign that Bruun & Hjejle sees lawyers as whole persons and has a fundamental understanding that they will perform better if they work within an environment based on a holistic view of the work–life balance.
A modern law firm
That Bruun & Hjejle was the first to offer fathers an extended paternity leave has a great signal value in the market, Christopher finds.
He believes that this initiative and the law firm’s general commitment to values such as equality and workplace culture going beyond the law help position Bruun & Hjejle as a modern law firm.
Read the article on Christopher and many more articles in Bruun & Hjejle’s annual report 2021 here (in Danish).