Can the father take maternity leave?

Paternity Leave? What Expectant Fathers Should Expect

In today’s post-2000 world, maternity leave for fathers has become increasingly acceptable, encouraged and even embraced. But that doesn’t mean everyone is taking it – or feels that they can afford to take time off for their newborn child. Many fathers take unpaid leave. But what about the ones who don’t have that option?

Maternity Leave for Fathers

There is a deep cultural shift that is going on in North America and Western society in general: the idea of parental leave as just as important for a father as for a mother. And the amount of time fathers are taking to be with their newborns and their partners/spouses after a birth or adoption is slowly ticking upwards as well. But there are a lot of caveats to this seemingly positive trend. First off is the fact that maternity leave, in general, is really only a “right” reserved for a small, more elite part of the workforce. Much of the decision to take time off (and, indeed, the affordability of making such a decision) is easier on small business owners than it is on salaried employees and wage earners. The flexibility of maternity leave has only come into play in the last decade or so, as technology has allowed more and more new moms and families in general to get in on the “digital economy” and work location-independent. As such, paternity leave is largely unpaid leave for salaried employees and for small business owners, has to be strategically planned out in advance.

Paternity Leave Laws Today

The FMLA – Family and Medical Leave Act – is the only piece of federal legislation covering the issues of family leave. But many American dads say that this is not really a useful piece of legislation because the lived reality is far different. First off, even though the FMLA guarantees 12 weeks of maternity leave for both moms and dads, that is unpaid leave time. This means the family will need to ensure they’ve built a solid financial cushion before leaving. And it puts added pressure on the father to return to work faster or not take time off at all. Secondly, the qualitative amount of “time off” also matters. Even if a young father takes all or a portion of those 12 weeks off, it doesn’t mean he’s not constantly checking in, running meetings, responding to emails or is present virtually to troubleshoot issues. There can be a sense that if the leave is not mandatory and nor is it paid then it’s optional – which means there will always be that one person who doesn’t take it and sets that precedent or expectation for other fathers. Furthermore, the FMLA comes with strings: it only applies to companies with 50 employees or more who have also worked at least a year and a minimum of 25 hours per week during that year.

When it comes to paternity leave, it’s up to the individual countries to introduce policies into legislation via formal bills and acts. These cannot be guidelines and suggestions but can be framed as entitlements and mandatory leave. The truth is that countries like Sweden and Iceland still lead the U.S. when it comes to a progressive stance on paternity leave. The results impact far more than immediate bonding and extend to producing healthy and productive children in society.