Introduction
Unlike many nations, the U.S. does not mandate paid leaves for either parent at the national level, and fathers’ use of childcare leaves has not become a new norm yet. Childcare leaves come in various forms, including parental leaves that refer to employee benefits for the representatives of either sex, maternity leaves reserved for mothers, and paternity leaves that only fathers can use. Depending on whether job protection is coupled with the compensation of the employee’s average weekly wage, these benefits are further classified into paid and unpaid ones. In the U.S., unpaid leaves are only guaranteed for public employees, school workers, or people employed by medium-sized private companies or entities with at least fifty regular employees. Since the U.S. is lagging behind numerous states in offering paid maternity and paternity leaves, new national programs are necessary to reduce this imbalance while also making fathers more responsible for childcare.
Parental Leave Policy in the U.S.: History and Current Issues
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993
The adoption of the FMLA in 1993 became the U.S. authorities’ key strategy to account for male and female employees’ changing work-life balances after becoming new parents. At the federal level, the FMLA remains the only leave policy to establish practices linked with taking job-protected but unpaid parental leaves (Petts 2). The FMLA remains the source of directions related to family leave benefits and provides uncovered employers with some freedom of action (Gordon and Rauhaus 4). Individuals working for covered employers, including public school systems, agencies, and medium-sized private companies, are eligible for twelve weeks of unpaid time off work to care for newborns (Petts et al., “United States” 615). Despite offering both maternity and paternity leaves and helping employees to engage in child care without losing jobs, the policy makes compensation a matter of agreement between the employer and the worker.
Americans’ Access to Parental Leave Benefits: Ongoing Inter-State Heterogeneity
In the absence of federal paid leave policies in the U.S., differences between separate states’ social security priorities and budgetary decision-making become pronounced. As of 2018, in addition to the FMLA, four states had paid family leave laws in place, and three more were determined to pass such acts in the future (Miller; Petts 2). California, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Washington, District of Columbia, New York, and Rhode Island had paid leave legislation in 2018; Colorado, Oregon, and Connecticut adopted it relatively recently (Jamorabo et al. 2; Petts 2). Similar to the FMLA, state-specific laws do not set any eligibility criteria that would discriminate on the basis of sex, and any inclusion criteria are employment-related in nature (Petts et al., “United States” 616). In some states, paid childcare leaves, including time off work required for bonding with or caring for a child, are available in various scenarios, such as becoming new parents and adopting children from foster care.
The degree of support is drastically dissimilar between the few U.S. territories that have adopted paid leave regulations. Firstly, the upper limit in terms of paid leave duration varies between these states, ranging from 4 to 12 weeks, which places employees in different locations in unequal circumstances (Petts et al., “United States” 617). Secondly, with regard to financial compensation, in certain states, such as Oregon, there is total wage replacement for low-income employees. At the same time, most territories pay between 40% and 80% of the employee’s average weekly wage for each week of leave (Petts et al., “United States” 620). Thirdly, some employee categories’ eligibility depends on the employer’s state of operation. As per Oregon’s policy that will be implemented in 2023, part-time employees have the right to access benefits (Petts et al., “United States” 620). In contrast, the other states’ projects are more restrictive and mainly refer to medium-sized companies’ full-time employees. Therefore, the existing paid leave policies are not standardized at all, which is problematic.
U.S. Fathers’ External and Internal Barriers to Accessing Parental Leaves
In the U.S., policy-related barriers, such as the absence of national mandatory paid leave policies, are further exacerbated by the peculiarities of social mindsets regarding fathers’ appropriate role in child care. The idea of shared paid leaves is accepted more positively nowadays. However, men in the U.S. still associate leave-taking with resistance from the employers and the risk of getting lower performance ratings and poorer career progression opportunities (Petts et al., “Paid Paternity Leave-Taking” 6). Aside from these external barriers that form the so-called “flexibility stigma,” new fathers in the U.S. face internal moral dilemmas when distributing new family responsibilities. Specifically, male employees requesting parental leaves might feel emasculated, dependent, non-ambitious, and incapable of being their families’ key financial providers (Petts et al., “Paid Paternity Leave-Taking” 6). Based on previous research, the stigma against paternity leave-taking is the strongest when it comes to male employees with a modest cultural capital. It involves being low-wage workers without specific academic degrees (Petts et al., “Paid Paternity Leave-Taking” 6). Due to these factors, the actual use of paternity leaves in the U.S. remains low.
To continue on stereotyping and equality, the paternity leave crisis in the U.S. is of interest to multiple content creators, sometimes becoming a source of inspiration for digital artists. For instance, Figure 1 represents Gash’s attempt to illustrate an inverse relationship between infants’ holistic well-being and the amount of time that new parents spend at work. The art also problematizes fathers’ insufficient involvement in daily care activities by depicting caregiving as the responsibility reserved for women.
The European Union (EU) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
Maternity Leaves
In addition to being unpaid, maternity leaves in the U.S. are significantly shorter than those offered in other EU and OECD states. As of 2016, six OECD members, including Finland, Estonia, Slovakia, Czechia, Bulgaria, and Hungary, offered their female citizens at least 100 weeks of paid leave (Chzhen et al. 9). Notably, many of these states are not wealthy compared to the U.S. Estonia had the longest maternity leave duration, with about 165 weeks of leave with compensation reserved for mothers (Chzhen et al. 9). Most OECD member nations provided around 60 weeks of leave (Chzhen et al. 9). Nowadays, Slovakia and Finland remain the world’s leaders in maternity leave duration (OECD.Stat). Therefore, the U.S. does not withstand international competition in terms of support for new mothers.
Paid Paternity Leaves
The situation with paid leave time reserved for fathers is also unfavorable when it comes to comparisons. 26 out of 40 OECD members had paid paternity leaves as part of their national family leave policies in 2016 (Chzhen et al. 10). Among these 26 countries, 16 guarantee total rather than partial salary replacement for fathers (Chzhen et al. 10). This probably serves as a measure to increase male employees’ motivation to participate in child care and bonding. The longest paid paternity leaves exceeding 50 weeks are offered in Japan and the Republic of Korea, but the rate of paternity leave utilization remains insufficient. In these two countries, only 2-5% of eligible fathers take paid leave, which stems from understaffing and personal fears (Chzhen et al. 10). In most EU countries offering paid paternity leaves, including Belgium, Austria, Germany, and France, the father’s share exceeds 10% of the total leave time (Chzhen et al. 10; De la Corte-Rodríguez 34). With its absence of nationally mandated paid time off for fathers, the U.S. needs much work to draw level with the other states.
How Paid Leaves are Financed and the U.S. as the Outsider
To provide paid leave time for mothers and fathers, EU and OECD countries make use of social security funds and the combined payment method that distributes the financial workload between the employer and the government. The first approach is far more widespread, and the mixed payment strategy has different forms depending on the state (Chzhen et al. 10). In many cases, the employer’s responsibility for payments increases when it comes to leaves that are shared or reserved specifically for fathers (Chzhen et al. 10). In a non-systematic manner, the U.S. employs both approaches at the state level to offer partial or total compensations in ten states (Petts et al., “United States” 620). Nevertheless, as most Americans are ineligible for paid leaves, the issues of financing remain strong.
Paternity Leaves and Paid Leaves for Parents: Research and Long-Term Effects
Paid Leaves and Infants’ and Women’s Health Outcomes
Childcare leaves for employed parents with compensation can be a promising approach to promoting the physical health of infants. Based on evidence from the UK, the opportunity to take paid parental leaves adds to fathers’ determination to access this benefit (Khan 3). It increases parental supervision at night and the amount of time that parents interact with their infants (Khan 3). Both outcomes could be protective factors for young children when it comes to hazards and boost their cognitive development. For instance, in the late 1970s, Pedersen’s research group reported a positive connection between paternal involvement and infants’ cognitive achievement at 24 weeks (Khan 3). Infant mortality is another issue that reduces with the adoption of compensated leaves for mothers. Based on studies using data from sixteen OECD member nations, every week of maternity leave with compensation decreases the nation’s infant mortality rate by 0.5 deaths per 1000 births (Khan 3). Thus, the evidence in favor of paid leaves’ positive effects on newborns’ health prognoses is abundant.
Compensated childcare leaves for either parent are also crucial in fostering women’s physical and psychological well-being in the postpartum period. Persson’s study of the mental health correlates of paid leaves in Swedish households suggests that compensated paternity leaves taken in the first six months after delivery decrease the mother’s demand for anti-anxiety medications (Khan 3). In mothers, compensated leaves can be protective against postpartum depression, emotional exhaustion, and excessive stress from combined workplace and parental responsibilities (Kreznar). If paid leaves are available for both parents, fathers’ engagement in care promotes improvements in the quality of maternal sleep, thus having protective effects against sleep disorders (Khan 3). Based on that, paid leaves ease the overall workload on mothers, resulting in their easier transition to new roles.
Leaves for Fathers and Family Relationships
As for relationships, compensated leaves reserved for fathers are conducive to the establishment of the psychological climate of mutual respect between spouses. The length of paternity leave taken voluntarily is directly proportional to men’s competence as parents and their family engagement level (Petts 3). According to research evidence from Scandinavian countries, paternity leave-taking facilitates co-parenting and mutual learning, which can result in the sharing of experiences and fewer barriers to healthy communication (Petts 3). Moreover, fathers’ increased participation in domestic work reduces the incidence of conflicts between spouses while also promoting the adoption of more egalitarian models of romantic relationships (Petts 3). To some degree, these trends imply that the lack of mandatory compensated leaves could reduce overall family cohesion on a national scale.
Implications for the U.S.
The aforementioned findings indicate that the U.S., despite the frequent proclamation of family values, does not employ a full range of employee protection methods to strengthen the family or the primary social unit. Since paid leaves’ benefits for developmental outcomes, survival rates, maternal health, and spouses’ satisfaction with their relationships are frequently mentioned in the literature, this expenditure item is automatically cost-effective. For the U.S., expanding the 12-week unpaid leave could become a multi-purpose intervention at the intersection of public health, family stability, and social security.
Solutions for the U.S.: Adopting National Paid Leave Legislation
Despite local attempts to support new mothers and fathers financially, including private employers’ initiatives and state-level policies, the U.S. fails to provide stable access to paid leaves at the national level, which calls for change. The first potential solution for the U.S. refers to expanding its existing policy, the FMLA, to introduce two separate paid leave plans for mothers and fathers (Bergmann 171). In this legislative scenario, separation would allocate a specified amount of total leave time for fathers, thus motivating male employees’ more active participation in infant care. For instance, at least 12 weeks of leave with total compensation for either parent and some additional weeks for mothers could be conducive to new parents’ enhanced sense of security. If paternity leaves are not classified as a specific subcategory of paid leaves, their adoption by fathers will likely remain suboptimal, and the traditional responsibility distribution patterns will persist.
Adopting another country’s paid leave model is another viable solution to support the U.S. in pursuing family-friendliness without overly massive changes. As per Bergmann, France’s rather “conservative” model could be useful for the U.S. due to expanding social support with a moderate financial burden (172). As of 2021, France relied on social security funds and offered 42 and 4 weeks of paid maternity and paternity leave with total compensation, respectively (OECD.Stat). France’s paternity and maternity leaves are mandatory, which could potentially reduce the stigma against fathers requesting parental leaves, and the country’s government regards leaves for non-married couples as a helpful innovation (Bergmann 172). For the U.S., considering its low paternity leave adoption rates, this strategy could help involve men in childcare without setting unrealistic gender equality goals.
Conclusion
On a final note, the U.S., despite its economic power, has not addressed its internal heterogeneity in parental leave policies yet. The U.S. is outperformed by most OECD and EU countries in terms of compensating male and female employees’ time off work devoted to childcare. Expanding its current legislation by including mandatory maternity and paternity leaves with full compensation of introducing new initiatives based on France’s model could support the country in promoting positive but not too radical changes.
Works Cited
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Chzhen, Yekaterina, et al. Are the World’s Richest Countries Family Friendly? Policy in the OECD and EU. UNICEF, 2019.
De la Corte-Rodríguez, Miguel. EU Law on Maternity and Other Child-Related Leaves: Impact on Gender Equality. Kluwer Law International BV, 2019.
Gash, Chris. “Parental Leave.” Parents.com, 2019, Web.
Gordon, Victoria, and Beth M. Rauhaus. Maternity Leave: Policy and Practice. 2nd ed., 2020, Routledge.
Jamorabo, Daniel Sabido, et al. “Fellowship Program Directors and Trainees across the United States Find Parental Leave Policies to Be Inconsistent, Inaccessible, and Inadequate.” PloS One, vol. 16, no. 11, 2021, pp. 1-13. Web.
Khan, Mariam S. “Paid Family Leave and Children Health Outcomes in OECD Countries.” Children and Youth Services Review, vol. 116, 2020, pp. 1-11. Web.
Kreznar, Christian. “Paternity Leave Helps Women, Men and Businesses—But Its Adoption Isn’t Equitable.” Forbes, Web.
Miller, Claire Cain. “Trump Called for Paid Family Leave. Here’s Why Few Democrats Clapped.” The New York Times, Web.
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Petts, Richard J. “Paternity Leave, Father Involvement, and Parental Conflict: The Moderating Role of Religious Participation.” Religions, vol. 9, no. 10, 2018, pp. 1-16. Web.
Petts, Richard J., et al. “Paid Paternity Leave-Taking in the United States.” Community, Work & Family, vol. 23, no. 2, 2020, pp. 1-22. Web.
Petts, Richard J., et al. “United States Country Note.” International Review of Leave Policies and Research 2021, edited by Alison Koslowski et al., International Network on Leave Policies and Research, 2021, pp. 615-627. Leavenetwork, Web.