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Which countries offer the best maternity and paternity leave benefits? A new Unicef report examined family policies and participation rates in the world's richest countries. The study covers the number of days of parental leave fully paid, as well as the provision of childcare services.
Not surprisingly, the Nordic countries rank first when all categories are taken into account. In Norway and Sweden, almost all fathers take parental leave, according to Anna Gromada of the UNICEF-Innocenti Research Bureau, co-author of the report. However, with regard to parental leave, Estonia is Estonia, which offers the longest period of maternity leave protected by employment (85 weeks at the full equivalent rate).
In some places, parental leave allowances can be generous but participation rates remain low. Japan offers fathers 30 weeks of paid leave, by far most of the countries studied. Yet, very few fathers (1 in 20 in 2017) actually use it. In South Korea, which has the second-longest paternity leave, men accounted for only 17% of all parents leaving in 2018, even after a national campaign to do so. British fathers also rarely take shared parental leave.
Some countries do not even have a lot of politics. Switzerland is one of the rich countries that does not provide specific leave for the father. "We do not see any relationship between a country's wealth and the evolution of family-friendly policies," says Gromada.
The United States is the real exception when it comes to parental leave. "The United States is the only high-income country in the world that does not even offer a single day of maternity leave," said Gromada. Some companies may provide parental leave, but there is no legal obligation. Unicef recommends that countries provide six months of paid statutory holidays for parents.
With all that in mind, how do countries compare? Look at the table below to find out.
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