Sixty-three percent of countries around the world provide guaranteed paid parental leave for fathers, according to a report out Tuesday morning from the World Policy Analysis Center.
Why it matters: Though support is growing for paternity leave, there’s still a stigma attached to men who take time off to care for their children. Yet, studies find numerous benefits for the economy, for fathers, and for their partners.
- “There is widespread recognition that we don’t solve gender equality without dads getting leave,” says Jody Heymann, founding director of the policy center and a UCLA distinguished professor of public health and public affairs.
The big picture: Back in the 1990s, only 46 countries had a paid leave policy for fathers, largely high-income nations, per the policy center’s data. Now the number is nearly three times as high.
- Conspicuously absent from the list: The U.S.
Worth noting: The U.S. is also one of just seven countries in the world that does not guarantee paid maternity leave.
- The other countries are the small island nations Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, and Tonga.
Even worse is to notice how many nations actually pay people to have babies… Money is putting off under-35s in the UK from having kids. How do child benefits compare in Europe? https://www.euronews.com/next/2023/03/01/money-is-putting-off-under-35s-in-the-uk-from-having-kids-how-do-child-benefits-compare-in