Men who take time off for family are generally viewed more negatively in the workplace than women who take family leave, according to a recent study.

In the study, Wake Forest business professor Julie Holliday Wayne, looked at responses to people who took time to care for a newborn, a sick child or a sick parent. Undergraduate students were given mock personnel files with resumes, job descriptions, performance evaluations and the Family Medical Leave Act forms requesting leave for various reasons: caring for a sick child, a sick parent, or a newborn.

SURVEY What do you think of men who take time off for "family leave"? They do more than most men, and that's good. I think of it just like when a woman does. Men should work, and let someone else handle the house. That's best for everyone. Results  |  Disclaimer

The students rated each person on how good a "corporate citizen" he or she was being, including evaluations of punctuality, availability for overtime, and willingness to help with difficult projects.

Participants generally rated male employees who took leave to care for a newborn or ailing parent less favorably than women who did the same, she said. Wayne found it was acceptable for men to take time off to care for a sick child, but not for newborns or ailing parents. Male evaluators were the toughest on male employees, rating them far less favorably than women who took leave for the same reasons.

"Working fathers may have to choose between taking leave to care for family needs and being perceived negatively at work, or not taking care of family needs in order to avoid undue penalties at work," Wayne said.

The FMLA guarantees a job upon return from leave.

Wayne suggested that employers should not only implement family-friendly policies, but create a culture in which it is acceptable for both men and women to equally participate in and benefit from those policies.

"In the same way that women should have opportunity for involvement in the workplace, men should have opportunity for involvement in the family," Wayne said.

The research was published in the September issue of the academic journal Sex Roles.