we haven't had our bubba yet, but his boss has already said he'll not only give DH paid paternity leave,but will be able to extend it beyond that time (i think he gets 2-3 weeks) and allow him to actually use rec leave even if he doesn't have it available - he will just owe them time. he works for a small company (only half a dozen employees i think), and his boss is a dad to young kids so he knows what it's about. his comment to me at the christmas dinner was that he'd rather keep his guys (and their families) happy, and retain them, rather than alienating them and having them move on.

DH has now been working for this employer for just over a year, so not a HUGE amount of time. the only thing the boss has asked is if DH is going to be prepared to work a day or two here and there during that leave (which financially is better for us anyway) as another of the guys is due to become a dad only a few weeks before our Gremlin is due. he's spoken to them both as he has 6 trucks, 6 full timers, and only a couple of casuals that will fill in - those casuals will need time off - he won't work them four weeks straight or anything! He will also work DH as close to home as possible for as long as i need him to both pre and post birth (so if something isn't going well, he'll get DH doing work that gets him home more often just for the support)

this is a personal thing DH's boss does. for my job, the men get two weeks paid paternity leave i think...