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Encyclopedia > Parental leave
Lost, see Maternity Leave (Lost).

Parental leave is the right to take time off work, paid or unpaid, to care for a child or make arrangements for the child's welfare. Often, the term parental leave includes maternity, paternity, and adoption leave. Maternity Leave is the 39th episode of Lost. ... Maternity is the social and legal acknowledgment of the parental relationship between a mother and her child. ... Paternity is the social and legal acknowledgment of the parental relationship between a father and his child. ... For other uses, see Adoption (disambiguation). ...


In most western countries parental leave is available for those who have worked for their current employer for a certain period of time. In the UK, for instance, working mothers are given the right to 26 weeks of paid leave for each child, 6 weeks at 90% of full pay and 20 weeks at a fixed amount. Women who were employed prior to the commencement of their pregnancy are entitled to an additional 26 weeks unpaid leave. After 1st April 2007, the rules changed. All female employees will be entitled to 52 weeks of maternity leave. 39 weeks of this leave is paid, with the first six weeks paid at 90% of full pay and the remainder at a fixed rate.


An example of generous parental leave is Sweden, where all working parents are entitled to 16 months' paid leave per child, the cost being shared between employer and State. To encourage greater paternal involvement in child-rearing, a minimum of 3 months out of the 18 is required to be used by the "minority" parent, in practice usually the father, and some Swedish political parties on the Left argue for legislation to oblige families to divide the 18 months equally between both parents. Norway also has a similarly generous leave. Political parties Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A political party is a political organization that seeks to attain political power within a government, usually by participating in electoral campaigns. ... “Leftism” redirects here. ...


The system in Bulgaria is even more generous, providing mothers with 45 days 100% paid sick leave prior the due date, 2 years paid leave, and 1 additional year of unpaid leave. The employer is obliged to restore the mother to the same position upon return to work. In addition, pregnant women and single mothers cannot be fired. Sick Leave (or Sickness Pay or Sick Pay) is an employee benefit in the form of paid leave which can be taken during periods of sickness. ...


There is currently a push to expand paid maternity leave in countries such as Australia and the United States. One organization supporting paid maternity leave in the United States is Moms Rising. It is doing so by appealing to each state legislature individually to obtain maternity leave in that state. Additional information about family leave policies and movements within the United States is available at PaidFamilyLeave.org.


In 2000, parental leave was greatly expanded in Canada from 10 weeks to 35 weeks divided between the two parents, which can be expanded to a year. In Canada parental leave is paid for by the Employment Insurance system. Unemployment benefits are sums of money given to the unemployed by the government or a compulsory para-governmental insurance system. ...

Contents

Parental leave rights in different countries around the world [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

Africa

Country Paid maternity leave Paid paternity leave Unpaid maternity leave Unpaid paternity leave Restrictions
Algeria 14 weeks 100% 3 days
Angola 90 days 100%
Benin 14 weeks 100%
Botswana 12 weeks 25%
Burkina Faso 14 weeks 100%
Burundi 12 weeks 50%
Cameroon 14 weeks 100% Up to 10 days paid leave for family events concerning workers' home
Central African Republic 14 weeks 50%
Chad 14 weeks 50% Up to 10 days paid leave for family events concerning workers' home
Comoros 14 weeks 100%
Congo 15 weeks 100%
Cote d'Ivoire 14 weeks 100% Up to 10 days paid leave for family events concerning workers' home
Democratic Republic of the Congo 14 weeks 67%
Djibouti 14 weeks 50% (100% for public employees) 10 days family-related leave
Egypt 50 days 100%
Equatorial Guinea 12 weeks 75%
Ethiopia 90 days 100% Five days of unpaid leave in the event of exceptional or serious events
Gabon 14 weeks 100% Up to 10 days paid leave for family events concerning workers' home
The Gambia 12 weeks 100%
Ghana 12 weeks 50%
Guinea 14 weeks 100%
Guinea-Bissau 60 days 100%
Kenya 2 months 100%
Lesotho 12 weeks
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya 50 days 50%
Madagascar 14 weeks 100% 10 days of unpaid leave for family events
Mali 14 weeks 100%
Mauritania 14 weeks 100%
Mauritius 12 weeks 100%
Morocco 12 weeks 100%
Mozambique 60 days 100%
Namibia 12 weeks amount as prescribed
Niger 14 weeks 50%
Nigeria 12 weeks 50%
Rwanda 12 weeks 67% Two days
Sao Tome/Principe 60 days 100% 10 days
Senegal 14 weeks 100%
Seychelles 14 weeks flat rate for 10 weeks Four days of paid leave for "compassionate reasons"
Somalia 14 weeks 50%
South Africa 12 weeks 45% Three days paid family responsibility leave
Sudan 8 weeks 100%
Swaziland 12 weeks
Tanzania 12 weeks 100%
Togo 14 weeks 100% Up to ten days of paid leave for "family events directly related to home"
Tunisia 30 days 67% 1 day (private sector), 2 days (public sector)
Uganda 4 weeks 100% 4 weeks
Zambia 12 weeks 100%
Zimbabwe 90 days 60%/75%

In political geography and international politics, a country is a political division of a geographical entity, a sovereign territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation and government. ... São Tomé, population 53,300 (in 2003), is the capital of São Tomé and Príncipe. ... The islands of São Tomé and Príncipe, situated in the equatorial Atlantic about 300 and 250 kilometers (200 and 150 miles), respectively, off the northwestern coast of Gabon, constitute one of Africas smallest countries. ...

Americas

Country Paid maternity leave Paid paternity leave Unpaid maternity leave Unpaid paternity leave Restrictions
Antigua/Barbuda 13 weeks 60%
Argentina 90 days 100% Two days
Bahamas 8 weeks 100% One week family-related leave
Barbados 12 weeks 100%
Belize 12 weeks 80%
Bolivia 60 days 100% of national min. wage + 70% of wages above min. wage
Brazil 120 days 100% 5 days (Article 10, Paragraph 1, of Temporary Constitutional Provisions Act of Brazilian Constitution)[2]
Canada 55% up to $413/week for 50 weeks (15 weeks maternity + 35 weeks parental leave shared with father) 55% up to $413/week for 35 weeks parental leave (shared with mother) 2 weeks
Chile 18 weeks 100% Article 66 indicates 1 day paid; Law N° 20.047 (2005) increased paternity leave to 4 days paid leave. (edward gonzalez-acosta, The New School)
Colombia 12 weeks 100% Law 755 (2002) appended a paragraph to Article 236 of the Labor Code to indicate that fathers have a leave of 4-8 days. (edward gonzalez-acosta, The New School)
Costa Rica 4 months 100%
Cuba 18 weeks 100%
Dominica 12 weeks 60%
Dominican Republic 12 weeks 100%
Ecuador 12 weeks 100%
El Salvador 12 weeks 75%
Grenada 3 months 100% (2 months), 60% for 3rd month
Guatemala 12 weeks 100% Two days at birth of child
Guyana 13 weeks 70%
Haiti 12 weeks 100% for 6 weeks
Honduras 10 weeks 100% for 84 days
Jamaica 12 weeks 100% for 8 weeks
Mexico 12 weeks 100%
Nicaragua 12 weeks 60%
Panama 14 weeks 100%
Paraguay 12 weeks 50% for 9 weeks Two days
Peru 90 days 100%
Saint Lucia 13 weeks 65%
Trinidad/Tobago 13 weeks 60%-100%
United States 0 weeks 0 weeks 12 weeks 12 weeks To be covered under FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act):
Must work for a covered employer (all public agencies; private companies with 50 or more employees within 75 miles.)
Must have worked for covered employer for at least 12 months prior, and at least 1250 hours in previous 12 months. Other restrictions apply.
Uruguay 12 weeks 100% Three days paternity leave for civil servants
Venezuela 18 weeks 100%

In political geography and international politics, a country is a political division of a geographical entity, a sovereign territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation and government. ... Barbuda is an island in the Antigua and Barbuda. ... Look up Trinidad in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Castara village beach looking south, Tobago Tobago is the smaller of the two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. ...

Asia/Pacific

Country Paid maternity leave Paid paternity leave Unpaid maternity leave Unpaid paternity leave Restrictions
Afghanistan 90 days 100%
Australia 0 weeks 1 year
Bahrain 45 days 100%
Bangladesh 12 weeks 100%
Cambodia 90 days 50% 10 days special leave for family events
China 90 days 100%
Fiji 84 days Flat rate
India 135 days (Central Government) 90 days or 12 weeks in State Governments 100% 15 days for Central Government[6] [7] and a few states like Rajasthan [8] Permitted only for employees with less than two surviving children

[9] In political geography and international politics, a country is a political division of a geographical entity, a sovereign territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation and government. ...

Indonesia 3 months 100% Two days' paid when wife gives birth
Iran 90 days 66.7% for 16 weeks
Iraq 62 days 100%
Israel 14 weeks 100% 1 year
Japan 14 weeks 60%
Jordan 10 weeks 100%
Korea, Republic of 60 days 100%
Kuwait 70 days 100%
Laos 90 days 100%
Lebanon 40 days 100%
Malaysia 60 days 100%
Mongolia 101 days -
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 52 days 100%
New Zealand 14 weeks 38 weeks Fathers can share unpaid (extended) leave with the mother of the child.
Pakistan 12 weeks 100%
Papua New Guinea 0 6 weeks
Philippines 60 days 100% Seven days paid paternity leave for married workers
Qatar 40-60 days 100% for civil servants
Saudi Arabia 10 weeks 50% or 100% One day
Singapore 12 weeks 100%
Solomon Islands 12 weeks 25%
Sri Lanka 12 weeks 100%
Syria 75 days 100%
Thailand 90 days 100% for 45 days then 50% for 45 days
United Arab Emirates 45 days 100%
Vietnam 4-6 months 100%
Yemen 60 days 100%

Europe

Country Paid maternity leave Paid paternity leave Unpaid maternity leave Unpaid paternity leave Restrictions
Austria 16 weeks 100%
Belarus 126 days 100%
Belgium 15 weeks 82% for 30 days, 75%* thereafter
Bulgaria 120-180 days 100%
Cyprus 16 weeks 75%
Denmark 18 weeks 100% (32 more weeks may be taken by either parent) 14 days paid paternity leave
Estonia 140 days (100%), 154 days in the case of multiple birth or medical complications[10] 14 days, expires after 6 months after child's birth 3 years
Finland 105 days 80%, followed by share of 158 days with father 18 days, can share 158 days with mother after maternity leave Until child turns 3
France 16 weeks (100%) rising to 26 weeks (100%) for third child 2 weeks Share of 104 weeks (2 years) with father Share of 104 weeks (2 years) with mother
Germany 14 weeks (100%) 6 before birth, 12 months (67%) shared with father (minimum 2 month) 0 weeks Share of 156 weeks (3 years) with father Share of 156 weeks (3 years) with mother Must have private health insurance for part of paid leave, rest of paid leave paid by employer
Greece 16 weeks 75%
Hungary 24 weeks 100% Five days
Iceland 90 days 80% (based on average salary for the two previous years). Max. monthly payment for 2007: Íkr518,600 (€5,950, $8,100); min. monthly payment for 2007: Íkr100,604 (€1,150, $1,575)

+ 90 days to be shared between the parents In political geography and international politics, a country is a political division of a geographical entity, a sovereign territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation and government. ...

As for the mother 13 weeks 13 weeks Parents must have been working for a period of 6 months prior to taking the leave. Entitlement expires on the child's eighth birthday.
Ireland 26 weeks (6½ months) 0 16 (4 months) weeks that can be shared with father 16 (4 months) weeks that can be shared with mother
Italy 22 weeks (5 months) (80%) 2 before birth 13 weeks (3 months) (80%) Maximum 26 weeks (6 months) (total for both parents maximum 44 weeks (10 months)) Maximum 26 weeks (6 months) (total for both parents maximum 44 weeks (10 months)) For paid leave, job contract must include social contributions (INPS)
Latvia 10 calendar days
Liechtenstein 8 weeks 80%
Luxembourg 16 weeks 100%
Malta 13 weeks 100%
Netherlands 16 weeks 100% 2 days 100% 13 weeks 100% 13 weeks 100% For unpaid leave you have have worked for an employer for over 1 year. Unpaid leave for children under 8.
Norway 54 weeks (12.5 months) (80%) or 44 weeks (10 months) (100%) - mother must take at least 3 weeks immediately before birth and 6 weeks immediately after birth, father must take at least 6 weeks - the rest can be shared between mother and father. 45 weeks (10.5 months) (80%) or 35 weeks (8 months) (100%) shared with mother - father must take a minimum of 6 weeks or else these weeks are lost as paid leave. Two weeks after birth (most fathers get paid by their employers, though) To gain the right of paid leave, the parent must have worked for the last 10 months before birth, or the leave is unpaid (except for a lump sum benefit from the government)
Poland 16-18 weeks 100%
Portugal 120 days 100% 
 150 days 80%
Five days plus two weeks. Of the maternity leave, 6 weeks is compulsory. The father may take the rest of the time the mother would have been entitled to.
Romania 112 days 50%-94% Five days
Russia 140 days 100%
Slovenia 90 days
Spain 16 weeks 100% Up to 15 days of the mother's leave can be taken by the father (if the father takes all 15 days, the mother only has 97 days to take off instead of the full 4 weeks (112 days))
Sweden 480 days (16 months) (80% up to a ceiling the first 390 days, 90 days at flat rate) - shared with father (minimum 60 days) 480 days (16 months) (80% up to a ceiling the first 390 days, 90 days at flat rate) - shared with mother (minimum 60 days) + 10 working days in connection with the child's birth
Switzerland 16 weeks (100%), 8 weeks mandatory None None None Pregnant women can't be fired
Turkey 12 weeks 66.7% Three days paternity leave in the public sector
Ukraine 126 days 100%
United Kingdom 39 weeks (6 weeks at 90 % of full pay and the next 33 weeks at a flat rate (as of 2007 = £112.75) or 90% of your salary if that is less than the flat rate) 2 weeks at a fixed amount (as of March 2006 = £112.75) 52 weeks 0 If a person has worked for their current employer for 26 weeks or more before the 15th week before the due date (and received a salary that is higher than a fixed minimum), they can claim Statutory Maternity Pay. This typically means that the child can not have been conceived before the mother starts a new job. They must give the employer notice before the 15th week before the child is due. People not eligible for Statutory Maternity Pay may be able to receive Maternity Allowance (for example if they have changed jobs while pregnant, are unemployed or self employed, or earn less than a fixed minimum, but they must have been working for 26 of the 66 weeks ending the week before the pregnancy and for 13 of those weeks they must have earned more than 30 pounds per week). People unable to receive either of these benefits may be able to receive other benefits, such as incapacity benefit. Maternity leave can be started up to 11 weeks before the due date. If a woman has a pregnancy-related illness in the last 4 weeks of her pregnancy, her employer can request that her maternity leave begins then, even if she is only off sick for one day. A mother may not start working again for 2 weeks (or 4 weeks if she works in a factory) after the child's birth[11]. Both parents can have an additional 13 weeks unpaid leave per year if they have worked for an employer for over 1 year for a child under 6.

References and footnotes

[12]
  1. ^ All of the above tables are compiled from http://www.apesma.asn.au/women/maternity_leave_around_the_world.asp (compiled June 2001), with additional information in the European table from http://ec.europa.eu/eures/home.jsp?lang=en (taken from this page in Feb 2006) and http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4837422.stm (March 2006).
  2. ^ Paternal leave rights compiled from International Labour Organization site at http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/condtrav/family/reconcilwf/specialleave.htm copyrighted 2006. This site does not list the amount paid for paid leave. Where information from the International Labour Organization disagreed with http://ec.europa.eu/eures/home.jsp?lang=en, the EU site has been given precedence
  3. ^ Please note that when entries are not listed in the table, it is because they were not known and not that they do not exist.
  4. ^ Information on Icelandic parental leave from http://www.althingi.is/lagas/132a/2000095.html
  5. ^ Information on Swedish parental leave from http://www.forsakringskassan.se/
  6. ^ No. 13018/1/97-Estt.(L) Government of India Ministry of Personnel, P.G. & Pensions (Department of Personnel & Training) NEW DELHI, Dated 7th October, 1997.
  7. ^ http://persmin.nic.in/estt/leave2.htm
  8. ^ http://www.hindu.com/2004/12/01/stories/2004120106890500.htm
  9. ^ GO.No 237 Personnel Department dated 29.06.1993
  10. ^ [1], accessed 06-22-2007.
  11. ^ The previous information is taken from http://www.tuc.org.uk/tuc/maternity.pdf and http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Parents/index.htm
  12. ^ The Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 (United States)

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues. ... The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues. ...

See also

“Parental care” redirects here. ... Sick Leave (or Sickness Pay or Sick Pay) is an employee benefit in the form of paid leave which can be taken during periods of sickness. ...

External links


  Results from FactBites:
 
Parental leave (5563 words)
The issue of parental leave is closely linked to that of the role of men in family life, since it permits a genuine partnership in the sharing of responsibilities in both the private and the public sphere.
Parental leave is part of a wider policy to introduce greater equality between women and men, which encompasses social policy, employment policy and issues relating to the care of dependants (elderly persons or children).
Parental leave in Finland is generous, at around 11 weeks, and when it ends, working mothers can claim a further period to enable them to stay at home until their child reaches the age of 3 or even more.
Employment Standards Fact Sheet - Pregnancy Leave and Parental Leave | Ontario Ministry of Labour (2752 words)
If each parent of a newborn took the maximum leave allowed at separate times, the baby would have a parent at home for 89 consecutive weeks (17 weeks of pregnancy leave for the birth mother, plus 35 weeks of parental leave for the birth mother, plus 37 weeks of parental leave for the other parent).
Parents may also choose to go on leave at the same time: for example, a father could take parental leave at the same time a mother is on pregnancy or parental leave.
Eligibility for pregnancy leave does not change because the baby was born early (i.e., before the due date) because it depends on the date the baby is expected to be born-not on the day it actually is born.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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