ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J. — Unilever U.S. Inc.’s Dove Men+Care brand is launching a global campaign to champion paternity leave for new fathers.

The brand said it is aiming to challenge stereotypes around men as caregivers and spark a cultural movement around paid paternity leave.

The initiative consists of:

• Driving awareness around the issue through a council of advisors, partners and experts, coupled with new proprietary fatherhood research.
• Providing new fathers with resources like the Dove Men+Care digital hub, which includes information and guidance for men considering taking paternity leave, the benefits of taking leave, advice from fathers who have taken leave, and how to approach and advocate for paternity leave at work.
• Encouraging the company’s employees to challenge stereotypes by taking their full paternity leave time off.
• Helping improve policies through corporate collaboration and partnerships.

“Since we launched in 2010, Dove Men+Care has communicated that modern masculinity is defined by the way men care,” said Nick Soukas, vice president of skin cleansing and baby care for Unilever. “By supporting this important initiative, our goal is to increase utilization rates of paid paternity leave for those men who have access to it and encourage other companies to come together and offer men paid paternity leave so they can take the time to care for their families.”

Josh Levs, author and leading paternity leave expert, said: “The vast majority of dads today want to be completely involved in their children’s lives from day one. Yet the lack of paid paternity leave in the U.S., societal stigmas around taking leave, and fears of repercussions at work still prevent most working fathers from having time to stay home for caregiving. Dove Men+Care is hoping to change the conversation around this issue and showcase how paternity leave is critical for all: children, women, men and families.”

Dove Men+Care said it is helping to shine a light on the burden most families face that don’t have paid leave. The brand said it has made one-time contributions to 27 active crowdfunding paid family leave requests of fathers and their families across the country.

To celebrate fatherhood and showcase the importance of taking the time to care, Dove Men+Care is also launching a new film called Dear Future Dads. The film features a diverse group of fathers sharing advice and personal anecdotes for current, expectant and new fathers on why taking the time to care for their children is so important.

Dove Men+Care said it continues to demonstrate its commitment to fathers from the start of fatherhood through its New Dad Care Package hospital program, currently in its fourth year. The program equips fathers with the brand’s skin, hair and deodorant products, as well as Baby Dove Tip to Toe wash. The brand said it has distributed to date 40,000 care packages to new fathers through its extensive network of hospital partners, and plans to reach 20,000 new fathers over the next year.