Japan: leave policy and attempts to increase fathers’ take-up

2019 ◽  
pp. 91-110
Author(s):  
Hideki Nakazato
Keyword(s):  
Family Life ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Working Hours ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Public Interests ◽  
Conservative Government ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
Childcare Policy

This chapter is about the development of Parental Leave in Japan, and in particular efforts to increase take-up by fathers. Before the first legislation was agreed in 1991 under the LDP conservative government, there were repeated efforts to introduce legislation, in which the trade unions played an important role and with advocates referring to research on European countries and recommendations by international organisations. Most of the subsequent developments to Parental Leave were based on recommendations by official bodies consisting of representatives of employers, workers and public interests, then agreed by government and designed by civil servants. Today, fathers in Japan can take 12 months of paid leave, with six months paid at 67% of earnings, yet the take-up rate remains low, slightly over 3% of eligible fathers. The chapter argues that developments in leave policy have not been part of a broad and coordinated set of measures, combining Parental Leave policy with childcare policy, working hours legislation and changes to workplace culture. This has prevented the achievement of two stated goals, eliminating barriers for mothers to stay in the labour force and increasing fathers’ involvement in childcare and family life.

United Kingdom: leave policy and an attempt to take a new path

2019 ◽  
pp. 57-74
Author(s):  
Peter Moss ◽  
Margaret O’Brien
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Maternity Leave ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Path Dependency ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Change Of Direction ◽  
Classic Case ◽  
Leave Policy

This chapter examines an attempt to transform UK leave policy, re-configuring it away from maternalism and towards greater gender equality, and why this attempted change of direction failed. It shows how the country introduced statutory leave at a late date, compared to other European countries, and adopted with little consideration a model centred on long and low paid Maternity Leave. After two decades of neglect, when leave policy came back onto the government’s agenda, this model became more established as Maternity Leave was further extended, while a newly introduced Parental Leave was marginalised. Attempted reform, in 2011-12, failed, due to insufficient support and understanding, leaving UK leave policy as a classic case of path dependency.

The working hours issue in Sweden

1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 715-728 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christer Sanne
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Working Hours ◽  
High Volume ◽  
Working Time ◽  
Labour Market Participation ◽  
Male Labour ◽  
The Welfare State

The Swedish welfare state model is based on a high volume of male labour and steadily increasing labour market participation by women. General working time reductions to below the 40-hour norm did not previously enter into the trade unions' framework of goals, preference being given to individual working time reductions, for example in the form of parental leave. As a result of the employment crisis in the early 90s the prevalent conception of the welfare state based on economic growth was shattered, so that the idea of general working time reduction began to enjoy increased popularity in large sectors of the population, particularly among women.

scholarly journals Does Mothers’ Parental Leave Uptake Stimulate Continued Employment and Family Formation? Evidence for Belgium

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 292
Author(s):  
Wood ◽  
Neels
Keyword(s):  
Family Formation ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Labour Force ◽  
Employment Outcomes ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Female Employment ◽  
Parity Progression ◽  
Subsequent Fertility ◽  
Employed Mothers

Parental leave schemes undoubtedly facilitate the combination of work and family life during leave-taking. In addition to this instantaneous effect of parental leave uptake, a growing yet limited body of research addresses the question of subsequent effects of parental leave uptake. As work-family policies, such as parental leave, are geared towards stimulating family formation and (female) employment, this study assessed whether the individual uptake of parental leave by employed mothers after the birth of a child yielded differential parity progression and employment patterns compared to eligible employed mothers that did not take leave. Using data from the Belgian Administrative Socio-Demographic panel, we applied dynamic propensity score matching and hazard models. Our results indicate that previous leave uptake is a differentiating factor in subsequent fertility and employment outcomes, but also that (self-)selection strongly affects this relation. Descriptive analyses indicate that mothers who use leave shortly after childbearing exhibit a similar progression to second births, more third births and less fourth births, while displaying substantially lower hazards of exiting the labour force regardless of parity. However, when controlling for the fact that mothers who use parental leave exhibit a stronger pre-birth attachment to the labour force, work for larger employers in specific employment sectors, and also differ from non-users in terms of household characteristics (e.g., higher household income, more likely to be married and less likely to have a non-Belgian background), many associations between leave uptake and subsequent fertility and employment outcomes turn neutral or even negative. No indication for higher parity progression among leave users was found and the hazard of exiting the labour force was moderately higher for leave users. These empirical results are discussed in the Belgian context of low parental leave benefits, short leave entitlements and low uptake of parental leave, features which are also displayed by other Western European countries and contrast with the Nordic European countries studied in previous research.

scholarly journals PATERNITY LEAVE (CUTI AYAH): Apa, Bagaimana dan untuk Apa?

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 351-366
Author(s):  
Dewi Ariyani
Keyword(s):  
Family Life ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
Labor Organization ◽  
Paid Leave ◽  
Paternity Leave ◽  
The World ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
Better Than

Abstract: Paternity leave is part of the parental leave program. Paternity leave is a leave policy given to male workers by many reason, when childbirth or adopting a child. Paternity leave is essential for reconciling work and family life for men. In fact, paternity leave is still a debate in various countries. According to data from the World Labor Organization (ILO), in 2013 there have been 79 countries that set policy on paternity leave officially. The policies of these countries vary in terms of length of paid leave and salary payments. The paternity leave range varies from one day up to 90 days. In general, developed countries have paternity leave provisions better than others. As for salary payments, most countries set full wage payments, but others without payments. During paternity leave, fathers can interact with their children directly and build bounding attachments. Bounding attachment involves the process of enhancing the affectionate and inner attachments between parents and infants. Some things that can build bounding attachment between father and child is through the giving of touch and play together.Keyword: paternity leave, bonding attachment Abstrak: Paternity leave merupakan salah satu bagian dari program parental leave. Paternity leave adalah kebijakan cuti yang diberikan kepada pekerja laki-laki dengan alasan istri melahirkan atau pun karena mangadopsi anak. Paternity leave sangat penting untuk merekonsiliasi kehidupan kerja dan keluarga bagi pekerja laki-laki. Dalam praktiknya, paternity leave masih menjadi perdebatan di berbagai negara. Menurut data organisasi buruh dunia (ILO), pada tahun 2013 sudah ada 79 negara yang menetapkan kebijakan mengenai paternity leave secara resmi. Kebijakan negara-negara tersebut bervariasi dalam hal lama cuti yang diberikan dan pembayaran gaji/upah. Rentang waktu paternity leave bervariasi dari mulai satu hari sampai 90 hari. Secara umum negara maju mempunyai ketentuan paternity leave lebih baik daripada yang lainnya. Adapun mengenai pembayaran gaji atau upah, sebagian besar negaranegara menetapkan pembayaran upah penuh, namun ada pula yang tanpa pembayaran. Selama masa paternity leave, ayah dapat berinteraksi lebih dini dengan anak-anak mereka secara langsung dan membangun bounding attachment. Bounding attachment meliputi proses peningkatan hubungan kasih sayang dan keterikatan batin antara orang tua dan bayi. Beberapa hal yang dapat membentuk bounding attachment antara ayah dan anak adalah melalui pemberian sentuhan dan bermain bersama.Kata kunci: paternity leave, bounding attachment

scholarly journals Consequences of Father’s Parental Leave Use: Evidence from Sweden

2009 ◽  
pp. 49-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann-Zofie Duvander ◽  
Ann-Christin Jans
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Working Hours ◽  
At Home

Fathers parental leave use is often assumed to affect gender equality both at home and in the labour market. In the home, fathers parental leave is expected to improve father-child contact later on in the childs life. In this study the associations between fathers parental leave use and further adaption to family life and contact with children are investigated. The first research question is whether fathers who have used parental leave are more likely to have shorter working hours during their childrens first years compared to fathers who have not used the leave. The second question is whether the contact between separated fathers and their children is associated with the fathers previous parental leave use. We use a survey carried out in 2003 with a sample of approximately 4000 parents of children born in 1993 and 1999. The findings indicate that fathers parental leave is associated with both shorter working hours later in the childs life and more contact between separated fathers and their children.

Comparative social policy analysis of parental leave policies through the lens of the capability approach

2019 ◽  
pp. 83-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Kurowska ◽  
Jana Javornik
Keyword(s):  
Policy Analysis ◽  
Capability Approach ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Comprehensive Overview ◽  
Ideal Types ◽  
Parents And Children ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
Constraint Structure ◽  
Income Opportunity

This chapter analyses public parental leave in five pairs of European countries and assesses its opportunity potential to facilitate equal parental involvement and employment, focusing on gender and income opportunity gaps. It draws on Sen's capability approach and Weber's ideal-types to comparative policy analysis. It offers the ideal parental leave design, one which minimizes the policy-generated gender and class inequality in parents' opportunities to share parenting while working, thus providing real opportunities for different groups of individuals to achieve valued functionings as parents. Five policy indicators are created using benchmarking and graphical analysis and two sources of opportunity inequality are considered: the leave system as the opportunity and constraint structure and the socio-economic contexts as the conversion factors. The chapter produces a comprehensive overview of national leave policies, visually presenting leave policy across ten European countries. It demonstrates that leave systems in countries from the same welfare regime can diverge in the degree to which they create real opportunities for parents and children as well as in key policy dimensions through which these opportunities are created.

Parental Leave: The Need for a National Policy to Foster Sexual Equality

1987 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-104
Author(s):  
Scott A. Caplan-Cotenoff
Keyword(s):  
Child Care ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
National Policy ◽  
Working Women ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
Sexual Equality ◽  
Pregnancy Discrimination ◽  
Foreign Countries ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
The U.S

AbstractWorking women are without substantial protection from the ramifications of pregnancy discrimination, and the opportunities for working men to take leave from work to participate in child care are limited. Recently, private businesses have begun implementing maternity or parental leave policies to address these problems. These policies are inconsistent, however, and a national parental leave program is needed to help women attain equal access to jobs and to provide men with the opportunity to participate in child care.This Note examines the historical background of pregnancy discrimination litigation and legislation, and highlights the gaps in the protection currently afforded women. It suggests that a federal parental leave policy may expand the scope of this protection, and attempts to gain insight and draw conclusions from analogous parental leave programs in foreign countries which may be used as models for a national program in the U.S. Such a program would benefit parents, children, and society by removing some of the obstacles to sexual equality.

40 Jahre Stabilitäts- und Wachstumsgesetz. Theoretische Analyse und statistische Evaluation einer verfassungsökonomischen Innovation

2008 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Heinz Grossekettler
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Full Employment ◽  
Working Hours ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Wage Policy ◽  
Inappropriate Use ◽  
Success Stories ◽  
The Law ◽  
The Impact

AbstractThis paper considers the impact over time of the German “Economic Growth and Stability Law”, which had its 40th anniversary on the 6th June, 2007. After looking at the history and development of the law and the associated expectations, the intended functions are analysed critically. Inappropriate use of the law is analysed from the perspective of public choice, as well as the insufficient consideration of reaction delays and, above all, the underestimation of the role of expectations. Furthermore, attention is paid to the fact that planning and coordination problems have not been satisfactorily resolved. A comparison with a control group from major European countries is then used to determine whether one can talk meaningfully in the German context of particular success stories in countering fluctuations in business cycles, the development of governmental debt and of legal objectives with respect to “price level stability”, “high levels of employment”, “current account equilibrium” and “satisfactory economic growth”. It becomes evident that government debt and unemployment have risen more in Germany and that growth rates have declined more sharply than in the countries on which the comparison is based. After discussing the hypotheses for explaining the weak German growth, growth accounting demonstrates that changes in the demographic structure, the substantial shortening of working hours and early retirement, blunders in the reunification process and an aggressive wage policy on the part of trade unions, particularly in the seventies, are the main reasons for low growth. This wage policy was triggered by the expectation of the trade unions that, with the aid of the Stability and Growth Law, the state would ensure full employment. In reality, however, the wage policy led to a reduced rate of investment and growth. This process could only be terminated by the restrained wage policy of the past few years.

Social protests, discontent and politics in southern and eastern Europe

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria da Paz Campos Lima ◽  
Antonio Martín Artiles
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Contentious Politics ◽  
European Social Survey ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Eastern European ◽  
Social Survey ◽  
Social Protests

Taking into consideration the debate on the role of social movements and of trade unions in organising social protests, in the light of contentious and conventional politics, this article examines participation in demonstrations in Europe and the political attitudes of the participants. The article uses data from the European Social Survey to examine the differences and similarities between European countries in respect of mobilisation levels over the past decade, arguing that distrust and dissatisfaction with political institutions might be a necessary condition but not a sufficient one to justify resorting to contentious politics. The article reveals the contrasts between the levels of mobilisation in southern European countries (Portugal and Spain) and Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries (Hungary and Poland) and examines the patterns and (re)configuration of the profile of the protestors in the 2002–2014 period.

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