Paid family leaves have been implemented and reformed over the past few years in all parts of the world, granting parents – mothers and fathers alike – more rights to care for their children, a sign of progress towards gender equality.
The European Union passed a new directive aimed at redistributing childcare responsibilities between both parents since there is still an imbalance in the work-life balance policies that reinforce gender stereotypes. Gender equality in the home is required to attain gender equality in the workplace.
Over the last ten years, among the 38 countries that have increased the duration of their paid maternity leave, 22 met the minimum standard of 14 weeks – or 98 days – fixed by the International Labour Organization (ILO). Laws are reformed, including in Colombia where the paid maternity leave went from 84 to 98 days in 2011, and then to 126 days in 2017. Ethiopia extended its paid maternity leave from 90 to 120 days in 2019. As for Suriname, it introduced a 16-week paid maternity leave – its very first – in 2019. Paternity leaves are also on the rise as 37 countries adopted them. As of 2021, 114 countries have paternity leaves, including Panama (three days), South Sudan (14 days), and Spain (16 weeks).
