A father has had his request to work part-time in order to look after his daughter agreed after taking his employer to a tribunal on the grounds of direct sex discrimination.

Groupama UK Services had initially turned down Robert Jones's request to work part-time after the birth of his daughter, now ten months old, but reached an amicable agreement with their employee at an employment tribunal.

Mr Jones explained that as his wife was the main wage-earner, it made sense for him rather than his wife to reduce his working hours.

Mr Jones received help and support for his case from the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC).

Julie Mellor, Chair of the EOC said male employees and their employers needed to follow in the steps of Robert Jones and Groupama UK Services and recognise that men, as well as women, had childcare responsibilities. "Traditional assumptions about who is the primary carer can amount to direct sex discrimination", she said.

EOC Solicitor Clare Hockney said that "men or women in similar situations with caring responsibilities should
go to their employer and ask for flexible working hours", adding that "the law is there to support employees and the EOC can help both parties reach a solution".

Mr Jones will now be able to work a four day week. His employer will be working with the EOC to put together a new policy to handle any similar requests from staff.

Julie Mellor summed up the case, saying "the end result of this case is a real life example of what could happen in workplaces all over Britain if flexible working practices were adopted. The EOC will continue to prioritise cases that demonstrate the potential for employers to provide working parents with choices".