✍️ Add your name to give every baby the first year they deserve.
A baby's first year lays the foundation for the rest of their life.
On 1 July, Australia expanded paid parental leave to 26 weeks, with four of those weeks reserved for fathers and partners. That was a genuine win, and it was hard fought.
Four weeks is a start. It isn't a finish.
The scheme is paid at minimum wage — around half what an average full-time worker earns. For most families it doesn't stretch to a year, and it doesn't stretch to two parents.
So instead of choosing how they want to share their baby's first year, parents are forced to make financial decisions. One parent stays home. The other goes back to work. Patterns that last for years are set before families ever had a real choice.
To be clear about something: this is not leave taken from mums. It's leave added for dads. Every week a father is home in that first year is a week a mother isn't doing it alone.
Dads are main characters in family life, not cameos. It's time our policy settings said so.
It doesn't have to be this way.
The Parenthood is campaigning for 12 months of paid parental leave at a replacement wage, with dedicated leave for both parents, so every family can afford to share their baby's first year.
On Monday 7 September, dads, kids and supporters took that case to Parliament House.
Here For It. From Day One.
Read the new ‘More Time’ With Dad report
People who have signed the petition
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Mel Cunningham signed 2026-09-16 11:58:40 +1000
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Caitlin Quartermaine signed 2026-09-16 11:54:47 +1000
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Lindsay Paton signed 2026-09-16 11:46:33 +1000
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Charlotte Shaw signed 2026-09-16 11:35:19 +1000
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Chai Foreman-Sim signed 2026-09-16 11:32:38 +1000
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Jenny Kim signed 2026-09-16 11:29:28 +1000
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Danielle Puetter Gunn signed 2026-09-16 11:24:04 +1000
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Rachel Jessop signed 2026-09-16 11:05:04 +1000
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Mikayla Banks signed 2026-09-16 10:59:06 +1000
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Ashleigh Hartshorn signed 2026-09-16 10:53:12 +1000
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April Wicks signed 2026-09-16 10:44:25 +1000
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Chantelle Walker signed 2026-09-16 10:42:58 +1000Proud Doter! dads deserve parental leave rights!
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Samantha Villar signed 2026-09-16 10:42:22 +1000Dotter
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Karlee signed 2026-09-16 10:39:28 +1000Proud Doter!
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Dimity Cooney signed 2026-09-16 10:38:18 +1000I was very fortunate when my 2 year old son was born, my husband took 6 weeks off work, with 2 weeks paid from work, 10 days PPL and the remainder unpaid. Whilst my pregnancy was low risk and we planned for a natural birth, we all know that not everything can go to plan, and we wanted to ensure that my husband could be available to support me if that was the case. We had a perfect natural birth but the following 6 weeks were hard for me. Hormone fluctuations, recovery from natural birth and the emotional turmoil of replacing someone I knew for 35 years took it’s toll and without my husband supporting me for those 6 weeks, I don’t know how I would have managed. Every minute as a family unit counts for so much in the long run.
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Billie Fox signed 2026-09-16 10:37:01 +1000
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Tayla signed 2026-09-16 10:35:07 +1000Doter!
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Elizabeth Boland signed 2026-09-16 10:33:31 +1000
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Emma Cochrane signed 2026-09-16 10:29:50 +1000Doter
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Samantha McArdle signed 2026-09-16 10:25:58 +1000
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Zachary Bullock signed 2026-09-16 10:18:39 +1000Doters!!!
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Leah Shimmin signed 2026-09-16 10:15:17 +1000Getting behind our doting dads!
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Carly Fowles signed 2026-09-16 10:10:20 +1000Doter
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Chris Li signed 2026-09-16 10:07:32 +1000We need to do better!
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Yolanda Fraser signed 2026-09-16 10:04:22 +1000Longer parental leave means families get to spend more time investing in secure attachments with their kids, come on Australia let’s do better!
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Amy Browne signed 2026-09-16 10:02:09 +1000
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Paris Speirs signed 2026-09-16 09:56:50 +1000Doter!!!
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Kayla Hardy signed 2026-09-16 09:55:01 +1000Doter
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Sharon O'Reilly signed 2026-09-16 09:53:28 +1000
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Saveria Bontempo signed 2026-09-16 09:53:25 +1000Doter