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Parental leave, or family leave, is an employee benefit available in almost all countries. The term "parental leave" may include maternity, paternity, and adoption leave; or may be used distinctly from "maternity leave" and "paternity leave" to describe separate family leave available to either parent to care for their own children. In some countries and jurisdictions, "family leave" also includes leave provided to care for ill family members. Often, the minimum benefits and eligibility requirements are stipulated by law.
Unpaid parental or family leave is provided when an employer is required to hold an employee's job while that employee is taking leave. Paid parental or family leave provides paid time off work to care for or make arrangements for the welfare of a child or dependent family member. The three most common models of funding are government-mandated social insurance/social security (where employees, employers, or taxpayers in general contribute to a specific public fund), employer liability (where the employer must pay the employee for the length of leave), and mixed policies that combine both social security and employer liability.
Parental leave has been available as a legal right or governmental program for many years in one form or another. In 2014, the International Labour Organization reviewed parental leave policies in 185 countries and territories, and found that all countries except Papua New Guinea have laws mandating some form of parental leave.International Labour Organization. (2014). Maternity and Paternity at Work: Law and Practice Across the World. A different study showed that of 186 countries examined, 96% offered some pay to mothers during leave, but only 44% of those countries offered the same for fathers. The Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, and the United States are the only seven countries in the United Nations that do not require employers to provide paid time off for new parents. Private employers sometimes provide either or both unpaid and paid parental leave outside of or in addition to any legal mandate.
Research has linked paid parental leave to better health outcomes for children, as well as mothers.
There are competing arguments to why peers have an influence to the duration of paternal leave of an expecting parent. The first hypothesis stems from mothers learning from their peers about parental leave programs they were previously unaware of. This increase in awareness would lead to more mothers using parental leave for a longer duration. A competing hypothesis states that when coworkers increase their pregnancy leave, there becomes a change in the social norms of that workplace. This phenomenon is known as "herd behaviour" in which an alteration of the traditional habits in the workplace shifted the behaviour of the employees.
Additionally, the income levels of fathers have been noted to influence the uptake of fathers' parental leave. Low-income fathers are less likely to use parental leave, and if they did take off time, it is shorter in duration compared to fathers with a higher income. The discrepancies between the two demographics may be due to fathers with lower incomes being restricted by personal finances. Fathers in heterosexual relationships are even less likely to take parental leave if the mother is a low earner herself. The mother's low income positively correlates with the father taking little to no parental leave. This may be due to the father wanting the mother to take longer leave or other factors; such as the pressure to provide for the household financially.
Research in Sweden found that foreign-born fathers are less likely to partake in parental leave than Swedish-born fathers. The authors have theorized that this result might reflect greater instability of labour markets for first-generation migrants. Additionally, there is a greater likelihood for first-generation immigrants to lack access to information concerning parental leave can contribute to the decrease in uptake from this demographic.
Another aspect that influences the uptake of parental leave is gender dynamics at home and work. In households with a positive association between fatherhood involvement and egalitarian values, the father use of parental leave is increased. Workplace environments that promote parental leave for fathers as essential create a greater likelihood of these dads taking parental leave for a longer duration. In contrast, a workplace culture that views paternal leave as an indicator of poor work habits and as "feminine" causes fathers in that environment to be less likely to participate in parental leave. In Australia it has been argued, by Georgie Dent, that the uptake of parental leave by fathers could enable the workforce participation of women, leading to improved economic outcomes for families as well as the country.
In addition to discrepancies present in eligibility, there is variation among expecting mothers who use parental leave benefits. For example, research performed by Kil, Wood and Neels(2018) found that native-born Belgian women had higher uptake of parental programs (52%) in comparison to first-generation Belgian citizens from Turkey and Morocco, whose uptake was relatively low (34%). The difference in uptake can be attributed to factors such as the flexibility of the parental leave, culture of the workplace, cultural ideals of paid leave, not knowing about the program itself and other normative factors that influenced the use of paid leave.
Research has found that mothers in same-sex relationships are less likely to uptake parental leave than mothers in different-sex relationships. Evertsson and Boye (2018) found that birth mothers in same-sex relationships, on average, took seven weeks less parental leave than birth mothers in different-sex relationships. The authors reference that gender norms result in the difference between parental uptake duration between birth mothers in same-sex relationships compared to different-sex relationships.
The reason for discrepancies in parental leave between same-sex and different-sex couples is theorized to have several different explanations, usually related to who can be a legal parent. One factor affecting parental leave duration for same-sex couples is the restrictive language found in parental leave policies. The study found that some parental leave policies only referred to heterosexual couples and did not include same-sex couples in the legislation, leading to increased barriers for same-sex parents to receive paid leave. Another significant barrier comes when same-sex couples try adopting their child. In 15 of the 34 OECD countries examined, same sex couples cannot legally adopt a child together. In these countries, same-sex couples may have one person in the relationship adopt their child as a single parent. Only one parent will be provided parental or adoption-related leave through this adoption strategy. While there is an option of second-parent adoption in some of these 15 countries, the process of a second adoption is costly and time-consuming- creating potential barriers that restrict the same-sex couple from pursuing this procedure. In some countries, same-sex parents can only be formed through a birth mother in a lesbian relation (considered legally a single mother), so the second mother does not receive leave.
Parental leave can lead to greater job security. Studies differ in how this helps return to work after taking time off. Some studies show that if a parent is gone for more than a year after the birth of a child, it decreases the possibility that he or she will return. Other studies of shorter leave periods show that parents no longer need to quit their jobs to care for their children, so employment return increases.
It does not appear that parental leave policies have had a significant effect on the gender wage gap, which has remained relatively steady since the late 1980s, despite increasing adoption of parental leave policies.
If women take long parental leaves, an economic model predicts that their lifetime earnings and opportunities for promotion will be less than their male or childfree counterparts—the "motherhood penalty".
Paid parental leave incentivises childbirth, which affects the future workforce and pensions.
There is some evidence that legislation for parental leave raises the likelihood of women returning to their previous jobs as opposed to finding a new job. This rise is thought to fall to between 10% and 17%. Simultaneously, there is a decrease in the percentage of women who find new jobs, which falls between 6% and 11%. Thus, such legislation appears to increase how many women return to work post-childbirth by around 3% or 4%.
Additionally, it appears that parental leave policies do allow women to stay home longer before returning to work as the probability of returning to an old job falls in the second month after childbirth before dramatically rising in the third month. Although this legislation thus appears to have minimal effect on women choosing to take leave, it does appear to increase the time women take in leave.
Maternity leave legislation could pose benefits or harm to employers. The main potential drawback of mandated leave is its potential to disrupt productive activities by raising rates of employee absenteeism. With mandated leave for a certain period of time and facing prolonged absence of the mothers in the workplace, firms will be faced with two options: hire a temp (which could involve training costs) or function with a missing employee. Alternatively, these policies could be positive for employers who previously did not offer leave because they were worried about attracting employees who were disproportionately likely to use maternity leave. Thus, there is potential for these policies to correct . A drawback of rising leave at the societal level, however, is the resulting decrease in female labor supply. In countries with a high demand for labor, including many present-day countries with aging populations, a smaller labor supply is unfavorable.
Something important to note for all the research cited above is that the results typically depend on how leave coverage is defined, and whether the policies are for unpaid or paid leave. Policies guaranteeing paid leave are considered by some to be dramatically more effective than unpaid-leave policies.
For women individually, long breaks in employment, as would come from parental leave, negatively affects their careers. Longer gaps are associated with reduced lifetime earnings and lower pension disbursements as well as worsened career prospects and reduced earnings. Due to these drawbacks, some countries, notably Norway, have expanded family policy initiatives to increase the father's quota and expand childcare in an effort to work towards greater gender equality.
According to a 2016 study, the expansion of government-funded maternity leave in Norway from 18 to 35 weeks led mothers to spend more time at home without a reduction in family income.
Partly in an initiative to combat the "motherhood penalty", Norway in 1993 initiated a policy change to incentivize paternal leave, the so-called "father's quota", and Sweden followed suit in 1995. This means a certain number of parental leave-days can only be used by the father, and are otherwise lost. In countries in which leave entitlements include a father's quota, there has been a pronounced impact, with the quota being credited for increasing paternal involvement and challenging gender roles within the family, promoting a more equal division of labor. To evaluate this change, Rønsen and Kitterød looked at the rate and timing of women's return to work after giving birth, and the effect on this of the new parental leave policy. In their 2015 study, Rønsen and Kitterød found women in Norway returned to work significantly faster after the policy change. However, public or subsidized daycare was greatly expanded at the same time, so Rønsen and Kitterød did not find that the "father's quota" was solely responsible for the timing of work entry. But it can be understood to have an effect on division of household labor by gender when both parents can take time to care for a new baby.
Another impact from fathers taking more leave is that in Norway it has been shown to have the potential to either decrease or increase the time women take, depending on whether the mother's and father's childcare are seen as Substitute good or Complement good. If substitute goods, mothers are able to return to work sooner as fathers take some of the childcare responsibility. Research has suggested a class element is at play: middle class fathers consider themselves a suitable alternative to the mother as primary caregiver, while working-class men may see themselves more as supporters of their partner during her leave. Consequently, middle class fathers may be more likely to use their allotment of leave right after the mother returns to work, while working class fathers may opt to take their leave during the mother's leave.Berit Brandth, & Elin Kvande (2016). Fatherhood in the Nordic Welfare States: Comparing Care Policies and Practice. Bristol, United Kingdom: Policy Press. In some cases, longer leave for fathers can motivate mothers to also stay home.
Fathers tend to use less parental leave than mothers in the United States as well as in other countries where paid leave is available, and this difference may have factors other than the financial constraints which impact both parents. Bygren and Duvander, looking at the use of parental leave by fathers in Sweden, concluded that fathers' workplace characteristics (including the size of the workplace, whether there were more men or women in the workplace, and whether the workplace was part of the private or public sector) influenced the length of parental leave for fathers, as did the presence of other men who had taken parental leave at an earlier point in time. As of 2016 paternity leave accounts for 25% of paid parental leave in Sweden.
A 2023 study found that paternity leave causes attitudinal change on gender issues. When paternity leave is made available to fathers, parents increasingly support gender-egalitarian socioeconomic policies and women's rights issues.
In the European Union, non-transferable parental leave remains a controversial issue. It was first introduced by the Parental Leave Directive 2010, which required at least one month of the minimum four months of parental leave be non-nontransferable; this non-transferable period was increased to two months by the Work–Life Balance Directive of 2019, which must be transposed by member states at the latest on 2 August 2022. Originally, the plan under the Work–Life Balance Directive was to increase the non-transferable period to four months, but due to inability to reach consensus among member states, a compromise was reached at two months. (note: this refers to the specific type of leave called parental leave, under EU law there are different types of leave, such as maternity leave, paternity leave, parental leave, and carer leave which are regulated differently).
Rasmussen analyzed a similar natural experiment in Denmark with a policy change in 1984 where parental leave increased from 14 to 20 weeks. Rasmussen found the increased length of parental leave had no negative effect on women's wages or employment and in the short run (i.e., 12 months) it had a positive effect on women's wages, compared to the shorter leave. There was no difference on children's long-term educational outcomes before and after the policy change.
A 2021 study found that the introduction of paid maternity leave in Norway substantially improved maternal health outcomes, in particular for first-time and low-income mothers.
According to a 2016 study, the expansion of government-funded maternity leave in Norway from 18 to 35 weeks had little effect on children's schooling. However, when infants bond and have their needs met quickly by caregivers (mothers, fathers, etc.) they will become confident and be prepared to have healthy relationships throughout their life.
Children whose mothers worked in the first 9 months were found to be less ready for school at the age of 3 years. The effects of mothers' employment appeared to be the most detrimental when employment started between the sixth and ninth month of life. The reasons for this were uncertain, but there is conjecture that there was something unusual for the group of mothers who returned to work in this time period as they represented only 5% of all families studied. Negative impacts in terms of school-readiness were most pronounced when the mother worked at least 30 hours per week. These findings were complicated by many factors, including race, poverty, and how sensitive the mother was considered. The effects were also greater in boys, which is explained by the fact that many analysts consider boys more vulnerable to stress in early life.
The same Harvard report also linked paid parental leave and a child's psychological health. It found that parents with paid parental leave had closer bonds with their children. Based on research of heterosexual couples, better immersion of the father in the process of raising a child can lead to improved development outcomes for the child and a better relationship between the parents. In recent years, various OECD countries drew attention to the topic, especially to the time of the parental leave taken by fathers, and concluded that short-term paternal leaves still lead to positive outcomes for the child's development. Families do take into account relative income levels of each parent when planning for parental leave; the partner earning a lower wage may be more likely to take parental leave. There is also often workplace pressure on men not to take paternity leave, or to take less than the maximum time allowed. To counteract these pressures and encourage paternity leave, some countries have experimented with making paternity leave mandatory or otherwise incentivizing it.
There are also observable improvements in the mental health of mothers when they are able to return to work later. While the probability of experiencing postpartum depression had no significant statistical change, longer leave (leave over 10 weeks) was associated with decreased severity of depression and decreased number of experienced symptoms. This reduction was, on average, between 5% and 10%.
Studies looking for a connection between paid parental leave have shown conflicting results. Some research looked at women 25–34 years old, who are more likely to be affected by leave legislation. Fertility rates peaked for those between 25–29 and 30–34 across European countries. Conversely, however, research in Spain found that after the introduction of two weeks of paid paternity leave, fertility rates fell suggesting that, when fathers are more engaged in raising children, they may become more aware of the challenges; their priorities may shift to quality over quantity of children; or that mothers are better able to remain connected to the workforce.
A study of a 2012 law in Sweden that allowed fathers to take up to 30 days of paid family leave in the first year after the birth of the child at the same time as the mother was on leave led to substantial improvements in the mental and physical health of mothers.
/ref>Aguirre, DeAnne, Leila Hoteit, Christine Rupp, and Karim Sabbagh. 2012. Empowering the Third Billion: Women and the World of Work in 2012. Booz & Company Inc. Many countries have implemented paid parental leave policies for both parents, while a minority of countries, like the United States, only have unpaid parental leave. A father's quota, which reserves a part of the leave period exclusively for the father, is sometimes assumed to promote gender equality, although the extent and effects are subject to debate.
As more women have joined the formal labor force, the lack of men's participation in parenting has been called out as a key example of gender inequality. Various studies highlight the importance of egalitarian parental leave policies in achieving equal distribution of childcare between parents. Moreover, when discussing parental leave policies, the focus is often on comparing improvements in maternity leave policies to what was available in the past, rather than comparing the impact of diverse policies around the world that distribute parental leave differently between both parents.
Statistics show a positive correlation between maternity leave policies and women's employment, but the causation relationship cannot be firmly established. While many believe that maternity leave policies encourage women's participation in the labor force, Anita Nyberg suggests that it is the other way around: that development of maternity leave policies was a response to women's participation in the labor force.Nyberg, Anita. (2004). Parental Leave, Public Childcare and the Dual Earner/ Dual Carer-Model in Sweden.
Economist Christopher Ruhm argues that men's involvement in childcare at the same level as women is essential for eliminating differences in gender roles. Thus, an increase in the use of parental leave by women (and lack thereof by men) will have a negative impact on gender equality. Inversely, an increase in the use of leave by men will have a positive impact. Transferable leave policies appear to be fair and equal in theory, since they do not specifically allocate leave focused on childcare to women and even allow the family to choose. In practice, however, it leads to the majority of available parental leave being used by women. The Norwegian Association for Women's Rights, summarizing different studies, states that there is only limited evidence to support a relationship between the father's quota and gender equality; the few relevant studies point in different directions; the association's former president, psychologist and former chairman of UNICEF Torild Skard, argues that psychological research does not support the assertion that mothers can be replaced by fathers in the first year. A Norwegian study from 2018 found that an extension of the father's quota had no effect on gender equality.
Through examination of leave policies in twenty-one European countries by describing the existing policy schemes' duration, payment, and transferability, Carmen Castro-Garcia created the Parental Leave Equality Index (PLEI), which can predict the participation of each parent in raising their children based on their gender and the existing policy regarding parental leave. His model shows that a policy that provides equal, nontransferable, and well-paid leave for each parent (which no country has at the moment) will best encourage men's and women's equal participation in childcare.
Findings by the European Parliament in 2015 found that 18 of the EU-28 countries offer paternity leave, and that the EU-average length is 12.5 days, ranging from one day in Italy to 64 working days in Slovenia.European Parliament. 2015b. " Maternity, paternity and parental leave: Data related to duration and compensation rates in the European Union". European Parliament. As of 17 October 2018: For 23 EU member states, on average only 10 percent of fathers take parental leave, ranging from 0.02 percent in Greece to 44 per cent in Sweden.European Parliament. 2015a. " a glance: Maternity and paternity leave in the EU". European Parliament. As of 17 October 2018:
The gender difference in the employment rate is representative of the gender employment gap; filling this gap is an important objective in promoting gender equality and is a part of the Europe 2020 target of an employment rate of 75 per cent for both men and women.European Commission. 2010. 'EUROPE 2020.' European Commission. As of 17 October 2018: http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/index_en.htm. The uptake of leave by fathers can reduce the motherhood penalty by enabling mothers to return to the labor market, as illustrated by studies that have shown that the involvement of fathers in childcare has a positive effect on mothers' full-time employment.Norman, H., M. Elliot & C. Fagan. 2014. 'Which fathers are the most involved in taking care of their toddlers in the UK? An investigation of the predictors of paternal involvement.' Community, Work & Family 17 (2): 163– 180
Reduction of the gender pay gap (GPG) is also an important goal for the EU. In 2014 the GPG in the EU-28 was 16.1 percent, which means that for every euro men got paid in the EU, women got paid 83.9 cents.Eurostat. 2016. ' Gender pay gap statistics'. European Commission. As of 18 October 2018: (The GPG exists equally after correction for occupation and education level.) A study done on the gender pension gap estimates the gap to be around 40 percent, which is more than twice the gender pay gap.Tinios, P., F. Bettio & G. Betti. 2015. ' Men, Women and Pensions'. European Commission. Increased leave uptake by fathers can reduce the length of career interruptions for women, reduce part-time work by women and potentially reduce the GPG, all of which are leading causes of the gender pension gap.European Commission. 2014. 'Report on equality between women and men 2014.' European Commission. http://ec.europa.eu/justice/gender-equality/files/annual_reports/150304_annual_report_2014_web_en.pdf
In Iceland, each parent receives paid leaves, and each parent can transfer a month to the other (therefore there are two transferable months between the parents). In Sweden, 90 days cannot be transferred from one parent to the other—i.e. each parent gets at least 90 days of parental leave, thus the quota applies equally to both parents and is not specifically fathers. In total, Sweden offers new parents 480 days of parental leave and these days can be used up until the child is 12 years old. The only Nordic country that does not provide fathers with a quota is Denmark, where women have the right to four weeks parent leave before giving birth and 14 weeks leave after giving birth. Thereafter, 32 weeks of parent leave are voluntarily divided between the man and the woman, making eight months leave entirely up to the family to decide. However, the dual earner/dual care model seems to be the direction of all the Nordic countries are moving in the construction of their parental leave systems.
A study done in Norway found that when parental leave is granted for both parents, there is still gender inequality observed in the form of mothers being more likely to have part-time jobs compared to their partners. Since then, the government has provided child care support for parents who want them to encourage mothers to return to full-time jobs earlier, and it is effective to a certain extent.
In 2007, declining and demographic change led to a new law, the "Parenting Benefits and Parental Leave Law" (Bundeselterngeld- und Elternzeit-Gesetz). This change in family policy had mainly two aims: to reduce parents' financial loss in the first year after childbirth, and to encourage fathers to actively participate in childcare by taking parental leave.
With this shift in paradigm, a better work–life balance and less support for the male breadwinner model was targeted. This was part of a "sustainable family policy" promoted by German unification and European integration with the underlying objective to raise birth rates by providing financial incentive.Leitner, S., Ostner, I. & Schmitt, C. (2008). Family Policies in Germany. In Ostner & Schmitt (Eds), Family Policies in the Context of Family Change, (pp. 175–202). The Nordic Countries in Comparative Perspective. Wiesbaden: VS-Verlag
The law's impact was mainly perceived positively with men reporting high motivation to take leave. So far this has not been reflected in official statistics, but Susanne Vogl concludes that if there is a general willingness of men to participate in parental leave the new Parenting Benefits regulations will help facilitate the actual decision to take a leave.
The group of mothers that uses maternity leave most often in the United States are White, non-Hispanic women and the usage of paid maternity leave is drastically lower among Black people and Hispanic mothers. The groups of women that have the most access and opportunity to use maternity leave are often reported as having a higher level of income and full-time employment. Statistically, Black women are half as likely to take leave as compared to White women. Black people are substantially less likely to take maternity or parental leave, which is due to structural factors including racial and ethnic discrimination in the workforce. Black women have less access to resources that allow them to take leave or provide care for family members, and Hispanic women are faced with the same issues. These disadvantages lead to lower socioeconomic statuses of Black and Hispanic people in the United States, which also contribute to a lack of opportunity for paid maternity leave and a lack of the financial resources needed to be able to afford taking unpaid or partially paid parental leave. Black and Hispanic workers are less likely to work in professional-class jobs, and therefore are less likely to have access to benefits like paid leave that come with such jobs. Black parents are frequently employed in the public sector, which also may exclude them from paid family leave opportunities. When a lack of access to paid or unpaid maternity or parental leave is reported, Black and Hispanic women are more likely to have higher risks of maternal and child health problems. Non-Hispanic Black women are more likely to die from complications of pregnancy than Non-Hispanic White women in the United States.
In the post-reform era, a series of new regulations have been introduced to protect women's employment and reproductive rights in the new market economy. The Labour law adopted in 1995 ensured that women and men have equal employment rights and that employers will not lay off women employees or lower their wages for reasons of marriage, pregnancy, maternity leave, or breastfeeding. The Labor Contract Law enacted in 2008 introduced the provision that prohibits employers from unilaterally terminating labor contracts with women employees who are pregnant, give birth, and care for a baby postpartum. Thus, under the Labor Law and Labor Contract Law, women employees are entitled to job-protected maternity leave.
The post-reform era saw further improvements in maternity benefits. The length of paid maternity leave was extended from 56 days prior to reform, to 90 days in 1988, and to 98 days in 2012. Most recently in 2016, paid maternity leave was extended to a minimum of 128 days after the long-standing one-child policy was replaced with a policy that encourages each couple to have two children. This latest extension of paid leave aims to increase fertility rates and slow the population aging process.
Companies are starting to offer paid parental leave as a benefit to some American workers, seeing a profitable aspect of doing so, including: reduced turnover costs, increased productivity from workers, and increased rates of retention among women after childbirth. Some see the increase in paid parental leave as indicative of companies reaching out to women, as more women are working and returning to work after having children, and by doing so these companies generate positive publicity as employers with family-friendly workplaces.Miller, K., Helmuth, A.S. et al. 2009. " The Need for Paid Parental Leave Policy: Adapting to a Changing Workforce ." Institute for Women's Policy Research. Washington, D.C. Working Mother magazine publishes a list of the 100 Best Companies for working mothers each year, a list which is noted not only by the readership of the magazine, but also by corporate America and increasingly by researchers and policy institutes as well. The Institute for Women's Policy Research issued a report in 2009 encouraging Congress to give federal workers four weeks of paid parental leave. The report cited statistics from the Working Mother 100 Best Company list, using private sector corporations as examples of substantial increase in the retention of new mothers after instituting a longer maternity leave policy. The report also noted that it would take newer workers four years to accrue enough paid leave (sick leave and annual leave) to equal the 12 weeks of unpaid parental leave provided under the FMLA, and that private sector companies that offer paid parental leave have a significant advantage over the federal government in the recruitment and retention of younger workers who may wish to have children.
As of February 2018, multinational companies such as Deloitte, TIAA and Cisco Systems were providing parental leave regardless of the parent's gender.
Sometimes there is a distortion in how maternity leave is reported and delimitated from other types of leave, especially in jurisdictions where there is no clear legal term of "maternity leave", and such term is used informally to denote either the minimum or the maximum period of parental leave reserved by quota to the mother. Some countries may be listed artificially as having more or less generous benefits. Sweden is sometimes listed in international statistics as having 480 days' "maternity leave", although these days include parental leave. As such, Sweden is often quoted as having an exceptionally long leave, although there are several countries with significantly longer leave, when maternity leave and other leaves are added, where a parent may take leave until a child is 3 years of age.
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women introduces "maternity leave with pay or with comparable social benefits without loss of former employment, seniority or social allowances".Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, Article 11, 2 (b) The Maternity Protection Convention C 183 adopted in 2000 by International Labour Organization requires 14 weeks of maternity leave as minimum condition.Maternity Protection Convention C 183, Article 4
National laws vary widely according to the politics of each jurisdiction. As of 2012, only two countries do not mandate paid time off for new parents: Papua New Guinea and the United States.Addati, L., Cassirer, N., & Gilchrist, K. (13 May 2014). Maternity and paternity at work: Law and practice across the world. International Labour Organization.
Unless otherwise specified, the information in the tables below is gathered from the most recent International Labour Organization reports. Maternity leave refers to the legal protection given to the mother immediately after she gives birth (but may also include a period before the birth), paternity leave to legal protection given to the father immediately after the mother gives birth, and parental leave to protected time for childcare (usually for either parent) either after the maternity/paternity leave or immediately after birth (for example when the parent is not eligible for paternal leave or where the time is calculated until the child is a specific age—therefore excluding parental leave—usually such jurisdictions protect the job until the child reaches a specific age).e.g. in Czech Republic: "Section 196 Parental Leave reads: "In order to extend the care being given to a child, the employer shall grant a female or male employee parental leave if so requested (applied for). Parental leave is granted to the mother of a child upon termination of her maternity leave and to the father of a child from the day when the child is born and it is granted within the scope as requested (as applied for), but no longer than until the day when the child reaches the age of three years." [11] Others allow the parental leave to be transferred into part-time work time. Parental leave is generally available to either parent, except where specified. Leave marked "Unpaid" indicates the job is protected for the duration of the leave. Different countries have different rules regarding eligibility for leave and how long a parent has to have worked at their place of employment prior to giving birth before they are eligible for paid leave. In the European Union, the policies vary significantly by country—with regard to length, to payment, and to how parental leave relates to prior maternity leave—but the EU members must abide by the minimum standards of the Pregnant Workers Directive and Parental Leave Directive.
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Social security |
| Mixed (maternity: 50% social insurance; 50% employer. Paternity: 100% employer) |
| Employer liability |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Mixed (maternity: 50% social insurance; 50% employer. Paternity: 100% employer) |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Social security |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Employer liability |
| Mixed (maternity: 50% social insurance; 50% employer. Paternity: 100% employer) |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Employer liability |
| Mixed (maternity: 50% social insurance; 50% employer. Paternity: 100% employer) |
| Mixed (75% social security; 25% employer liability) |
| Social security |
| Employer liability |
| Employer liability |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Employer liability |
| Employer liability |
| Mixed (50% social insurance; 50% employer) |
| Mixed (social security flat rate, employer pays the difference to equal wage) |
| Employer liability |
| Employer liability |
| Employer (social security for self-employed) |
| Mixed (maternity: 50% social insurance; 50% employer. Paternity: 100% employer) |
| Employer liability |
| Social security |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Employer liability |
| Social security |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Social security |
| Mixed (50% social insurance; 50% employer) |
| Employer liability |
| Employer liability |
| Social security |
| Social security |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Employer liability |
| Employer liability |
| Social security |
| Employer liability |
| Employer liability |
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) |
| Mixed (maternity: 50% social insurance; 50% employer. Paternity: 100% employer) |
| Social security |
| Employer liability |
| Employer liability |
| Employer liability |
| Afghanistan | 90 days 100% | |||||
| Bahrain | 60 days 100% | There is unpaid maternity leave for taking care of a child not exceeding six years of age, of maximum six-month each time and for three times throughout the period of the mother's service. | ||||
| Bangladesh | 16 weeks (8 weeks before delivery and 8 weeks after delivery) 100% | In case of third-plus-time mother, who has two or more babies alive already. | ||||
| Cambodia | 90 days 50% | 10 days' special leave for family events | ||||
| China | 14 weeks | |||||
| Hong Kong | 14 weeks (100% for 10 weeks, up to HK$80,000 for the rest) | 5 days 80%, public servant 100% | ||||
| India | 26 weeks 100%. | Up to 15 days' (3 working weeks) male leave 100%(only for Government Employees). For private sector, it is as per company policies | Prohibits employers from allowing women to work within six weeks after giving birth. Maternity Benefits Act, 1961. Section 4. VakilNo1. 12 December 1961. A female employee is eligible only if she worked for the employer and contributed for at least 80 days during the 12-month period preceding the date of expected delivery.Lotiya, Palak. " Maternity benefits – A mode of dignifying motherhood ". Paycheck.in. Indian Institute of Management. In the case of a stillbirth, miscarriage or an abortion, six weeks of paid leave is required instead. From the third child onwards, only 12 weeks of paid maternity leave is permitted. | |||
| Indonesia | 3 months 100% | Two days' paid when wife gives birth | ||||
| Iran | 6 months 100% | 2 weeks compulsory 100% | ||||
| Iraq | 62 days 100% | |||||
| Israel | 15 weeks 100%, with an additional 12 weeks unpaid. The weeks from 6th to 15th can be taken by the father. | Can take the paid leave instead of the mother starting from the 6th week (up to 15 weeks) | 1 year | |||
| Japan | 14 weeks 60% | 1 year | ||||
| Jordan | 10 weeks 100% | |||||
| Korea, Republic of | 90 days 100% | 10 days | Parents who have a child aged not more than 8 years or in the 2nd or lower grade of an elementary school are eligible for one year of child care leave paid by the Employment Insurance Fund at 40% of normal wage. | |||
| Korea, Democratic People's Republic of | 11 weeks | |||||
| Kuwait | 70 days 100% | |||||
| Lao People's Democratic Republic | 3 months 70% | |||||
| Lebanon | 10 weeks 100% | 1 day 100% | ||||
| Malaysia | 98 days 100% | 7 days 100% | ||||
| Mongolia | 120 days 70% | |||||
| Myanmar | 12 weeks 66.7% | Six days of "casual leave" that can be used by fathers to assist their spouses at the time of confinement | ||||
| Nepal | 98 days | 15 days | ||||
| Oman | 14 weeks, 100%; 50 days prior to and 50 days after birth (per Omani Labor Law, Royal Decree No. 35/2003, 26 April 2003). | |||||
| Pakistan | 180 days for the birth of the first child, 120 days for the second, and 90 days for the third, 100%. For additional children unpaid leave can be granted. | 30 days 100% for the first three separate births. For additional children, unpaid leave can be granted. | ||||
| Philippines | 105 days 100%, applicable also to miscarriages. 7 days' 100% parental leave per year for solo parents until the child is 18, or indefinitely if the child has a disability. | 14 days' paid paternity leave for married workers. Seven days' 100% parental leave per year for solo parents until the child is 18, or indefinitely if the child has a disability. | ||||
| Qatar | 50 days 100% for civil servants | |||||
| Saudi Arabia | 10 weeks 50% or 100% | Three days | ||||
| Singapore | 16 weeks 100% (Singaporean citizen) or 12 weeks 67% (non-Singaporean citizen) | 2 weeks of 100% government-paid paternity leave for fathers. Up to 4 weeks of 100% government-paid shared parental leave to allow fathers to share up to 4 weeks of the working mother's maternity leave entitlement. (all covered under Employment Act) | 16 weeks of maternity leave is restricted to women whose children are Singapore citizens and has served her employer for at least 90 days before the child's birth. | |||
| Sri Lanka | 12 weeks 100% (84 working days), 84 days 50% | 3 days 100% (only for state sector employees). For private sector, it is as per company policies. | 84 days | |||
| Syrian Arab Republic | 50 days 70% | |||||
| Taiwan | 8 weeks 100% for more than six months of employment or 50% for less six months of employment | 5 days 100% | Two years of unpaid leave under certain conditions (also can be partly paid from Employment Insurance Parental Leave Allowance) | Two years of unpaid leave under certain conditions (also can be partly paid from Employment Insurance Parental Leave Allowance) | ||
| Thailand | 98 days (100% of salary during the first 45 days of leave, and that first half of the leave period is paid by the employer. The second half of leave is paid by social security at). | |||||
| United Arab Emirates | 45 days 100% (plus an additional unpaid leave, there is total of 100 days' maternity leave) | 55 days | Maternity leave at 100% pay is subject to the employee having served continuously for not less than one year. The maternity leave shall be granted with half-pay if the woman has not completed one year. | |||
| Vietnam | 4–6 months 100% | |||||
| Yemen | 60 days 100% |
| Albania | 52 | 80% for 21 weeks; 50% remainder | 0Addati, L., Cassirer, N., & Gilchrist, K. (13 May 2014). Maternity and paternity at work: Law and practice across the world. International Labour Organization. 978-92-2-128630-1ISBN. p. 159 | 2 | % | Mixed (Social security for maternity leave; employer liability for parental leave) | |
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| There are 17 weeks of leave for each parent, with different options of using it: in one go, in several parts, by reducing work hours, by taking one half day or one full day off per week. | Mixed (3 days' paternity leave employer liability; Social security) | ||||||
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Mixed (social security & employer) | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Mixed (social security & employer liability) | |||||||
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
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| Social security | |||||||
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| Social security | |||||||
| Both parents are entitled to equal parental leave. The "first parental leave" must be taken (by either the mother or the father) immediately after the end of maternity leave. The "second parental leave" may be taken by the other parent at any time up until the child's 6th birthday.
Parental leave can be taken in a variety of formats:
The latter three options require the employer's approval. The first option is an absolute right and cannot be refused by the employer. Self-employed people and apprentices are also fully entitled to parental leave. | Mixed (maternity leave: social security; paternity leave: 80/20 social security/employer; parental leave: depends on formula chosen – employer pays for time worked, social security pays for time on leave) | ||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Mixed (social security & employer liability) | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) | |||||||
| Mixed (Social security expect first two weeks of paternity leave) | |||||||
| 19 | 80% of earnings up to a ceiling of $66 000 (2023) | 2 + 19 | 80% of earnings up to a ceiling of $66 000 (2023) | Paid leave: 18 weeks; Unpaid leave: 52 weeks | 80% of earnings up to a ceiling of $66 000 (2023) | Mixed (Social security expect first two weeks of paternity leave) | |
| Social security | |||||||
| There are two types of leave: Paid leave: 13 each; "sharing bonus" of 4 weeks if initial leave shared. Unpaid leave: After the paid leave, and only if this leave has been taken, one of the parents may take up to two years of childcare leave (licença para assistência a filho) on a full-time basis, extended to three years when there is a third or subsequent child. | Social security | ||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Social security | |||||||
| Mixed (Social security maternity leave; employer liability paternity leave) | |||||||
| Flat rate | Social security | ||||||
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| Mixed (employers reimbursed) | |||||||
| Social security |
| Mixed |
| N/A |
On 1 December 2016, "family leave reform bill 7060" was passed in the Luxembourg parliament. According to this new reform, now fathers and mothers can take leave together. The first leave has to be taken right after maternity leave and the second can be taken before the child turns 6 years old. This new reform provides much more flexibility. The parent has four options: either they can take 4 to 6 months' full leave, 8 to 12 months' part-time leave, take one day off per week for 20 months or can take 4 individual months within 20 months. The official Luxembourg government portal suggests that according to the data collected more than 85% of the parents are extremely happy with this new reform and 79% people think that this new system is better than the older system.
Due to parental leave being under provincial jurisdiction, there is a decentralized nature to the policies concerning leave benefit programs. For example, the province of Quebec has some of the greatest maternity leave benefits in the country. In Quebec, a greater number of people are eligible for parental leave benefits and there are more benefits they can receive, compared to other provinces. The variety among provinces concerning parental leave has raised debates on whether there should be a unitary federal program for parental leave policies in Canada.
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