Fathers’ Sense of Entitlement to Earmarked and Shared Parental Leave

2020 ◽  
pp. 21-36
Author(s):  
Berit Brandth ◽  
Elin Kvande
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
Sense Of Entitlement ◽  
The Individual

In most countries, parental leave systems consist of several parts with different lengths for fathers and/or mothers. We compare fathers’ sense of entitlement to two parts of the Norwegian leave policy available to them, namely the individual, non-transferable father’s quota and the shared parental leave. The objective is to gain knowledge of the rationale for fathers’ different take-ups of the two types of leave. Analysis of interviews with 22 fathers shows culturally divergent understandings of the two types of leave among fathers. Using the concept of ‘entitlement’ as theoretical lens, we find that fathers feel entitled to the father’s quota based on gender equality norms in working life and the wider society. Fathers do to a much smaller degree feel entitled to the shared parental leave, which is culturally understood as mothers’ entitlement. This understanding is, however, challenged by some fathers’ claim to the shared leave based on their being competent parents.

Fathers’ sense of entitlement to ear-marked and shared parental leave

2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (5) ◽  
pp. 1154-1169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Berit Brandth ◽  
Elin Kvande
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Sense Of Entitlement ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Individual

In most countries, parental leave systems consist of several parts with different lengths for fathers and/or mothers. This article compares fathers’ sense of entitlement to two parts of the Norwegian parental leave system that are available to them, namely the individual, non-transferable father’s quota and the shared parental leave. The objective is to gain knowledge of the rationale for fathers’ different take-up of the two types of leave. Analysis of interviews with 22 fathers finds culturally divergent understandings of the two types of leave among them. Using the concept of ‘entitlement’ as a theoretical lens, results show that fathers feel entitled to the father’s quota based on fathering- and gender equality norms in working life and the wider society. Fathers feel entitled to a much smaller degree to the shared parental leave, which is culturally understood as mothers’ entitlement. This understanding is, however, challenged by some fathers’ claim to the shared leave on the basis of their being competent parents.

Designing parental leave for fathers – promoting gender equality in working life

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 465-477 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elin Kvande ◽  
Berit Brandth
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
Leave Taking ◽  
Staying At Home ◽  
The Welfare State ◽  
The Ideal

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the Norwegian parental leave policy for fathers, the father’s quota, which has reached a mature age of 26 years, asking how gender equality has been affected in working life. Design/methodology/approach Based on interviews with 28 fathers who have used the father’s quota, the paper analyzes the connection between leave design, its use and impacts by using the design elements of individualization, generosity and non-transferability. Findings Findings show that in granting fathers an individual, earmarked and non-transferable right, the welfare state has contributed to turning leave taking into a norm for modern fathering. The generosity in terms of length and full wage compensation strengthens it as a right in working life. Fathers being paid their full wages for staying at home taking care of their child emphasize the dual-carer norm. The analyses show that the collision between fatherhood and the ideal of the unencumbered employee has weakened in many types of organizations. Originality/value The paper addresses the request put forward by Lewis and Stumbitz (2017) and Moss and Deven (2015) where they state that there has been little research addressing how parental leave is implemented in working 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.

Predictors of parental leave support: Bad news for (big) dads and a policy for equality

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 810-830
Author(s):  
Jamie L. Gloor ◽  
Xinxin Li ◽  
Rebecca M. Puhl
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Gender Inequality ◽  
Policy Design ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Managerial Discretion ◽  
Bad News ◽  
Unpaid Labor ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
Employee Characteristics ◽  
Variable Support

Parenthood increases gender inequality in paid (employment) and unpaid labor (e.g., caretaking). New parental leave plans aim to increase gender equality by reducing managerial discretion and offering gender-neutral benefits. However, coworkers may undermine these inclusive aims, particularly if they show variable support per employee characteristics. Thus, we examine why and how employee gender and obesity interactively predict coworkers’ support for parental leave and test an intervention to increase equality. Three between-subjects experiments with working American adults ( Ns = 133–252) indicate that obesity decreases coworkers’ parental leave support for men, but increases coworkers’ parental leave support for women; these effects are replicated and mediated by coworkers’ caregiving ability expectations of the employees, inequalities that are reduced when parental leave is made the default. Discussion focuses on our results’ implications for theory, practice, and for men and women’s paid and unpaid labor, including recommendations for parental leave policy design and delivery to increase equality.

Parental Leave Policy and Gender Equality in Europe

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 51-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Castro-García ◽  
Maria Pazos-Moran
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
And Gender

Gender equality: Parental Leave design and evaluating its effects on fathers’ participation

2019 ◽  
pp. 187-204
Author(s):  
Ann-Zofie Duvander ◽  
Guðný Björk Eydal ◽  
Berit Brandth ◽  
Ingólfur V. Gíslason ◽  
Johanna Lammi-Taskula ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Nordic Countries ◽  
Paid Work ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Mothers And Fathers ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
Leave Taking ◽  
And Gender

This chapter is about the design of Parental Leave policy and its relationship to leave-taking by fathers and gender equality more generally. The Nordic countries have historically emphasised gender equality in policymaking and have been in the forefront for introducing policies that encourage mothers and fathers to share responsibility for the care of children. Parental Leave is considered to be one such policy as it secures fathers’ rights to participate in the care of the child, with potentially long-term effects on their involvement with children and the division of unpaid and paid work. However, there are different designs for Parental Leave, and the chapter identifies the major dimensions in the design of Nordic Parental Leave policies and evaluates them in relation to their effect on gender equality. It also considers how to conceptualise and measure gender equality in association with Parental Leave.

Workplace Support of Fathers’ Parental Leave Use

2020 ◽  
pp. 169-182
Author(s):  
Berit Brandth ◽  
Elin Kvande
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Work Organizations ◽  
Family Research ◽  
Workplace Support ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Work Family

This article highlights the importance of social policy and working life contexts for employed fathers’ use of parental leave. It directs attention towards the Norwegian model, which is known for its gender equality aims and welfare-state support to families, but which is also active in the regulation of working life. Based on interviews with fathers who have used the father’s quota, findings run counter to work-family research where gendered assumptions in work organizations are found to prevent active fathering. The interviewed fathers report positive attitudes and supportive practices among employers. Fathers’ stories show that their use of the leave is subject to cooperation and compromising processes at the workplace level that research on fatherhood and organizations have hardly addressed.

scholarly journals Gender equality and parenting-related leaves in 21 former socialist countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 495-514 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivana Dobrotić ◽  
Nada Stropnik
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Policy Design ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Policy Reforms ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Promote Gender Equality ◽  
Leave Policy ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Historical Comparative ◽  
Competing Priorities

PurposeThis article explores the patterns and dynamics of parenting-related leave policy reforms in the European former socialist countries (EFSCs). It sheds light on the development pattern of their leave policies and their potential to reproduce, impede, or transform traditional gender norms in employment and care.Design/methodology/approachThe article provides a historical comparative analysis of leave policy developments in 21 EFSCs in the 1970–2018 period. It systematically explores continuity and changes in leave policy design − generosity (leave duration and benefits level) and fathers' entitlements to leaves − as well as policy concerns and gender-equality-related implications.FindingsFollowing the state-socialist commitment to gender equality, the EFSCs introduced childcare/parental leaves early. Nevertheless, they developed mother-centered leaves of equality-impeding character, in that they did not promote gender equality. The divergence of EFSCs' leave policies intensified in the period of transition from socialism to capitalism, as competing priorities and inter-related policy concerns – such as re-traditionalization, fertility incentives, gender equality, and labor market participation – influenced policy design. Leave policies of the EFSCs that joined the EU gradually transformed towards more gender-equal ones. Nonetheless, the progress has been slow, and only three countries can be classified as having equality-transforming leaves (Slovenia, Lithuania, and Romania).Originality/valueThis article extends existent comparative studies on maternity/paternity/parental leaves, exploring the region that has been overlooked by such research. It provides valuable insights into the implications of intersectional dimensions of leave design as well as competing priorities and concerns embedded in it. It points to the methodological complexity of evaluating the development of parental leave policies in a cross-country perspective.

scholarly journals Gender Equality policy in Sweden: 1970s–2010s

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita Nyberg
Keyword(s):  
Gender Equality ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Domestic Work ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Family Responsibilities ◽  
Dual Earner ◽  
Part Time ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Gender Equality Policy

The aim of this article is to give an overview of gender equality policy in Sweden from the 1970s until today. A number of political measures and whether these measures individually, as well as combined, have promoted gender equality and the dual-earner/dual-carer model are described and analyzed. The conclusion is that the right to part-time work, publicly financed child care, parental leave, and tax deductions for domestic services make it easier for mothers to reconcile work and family, but do not challenge the distribution of family responsibilities between women and men. However, the individual right for fathers to 2 months of parental leave does challenge the gender order, to a certain extent, and fathers today participate more in care and domestic work than earlier. The dual-earner/dual-carer family is closer at hand when women have a higher education and earnings and thereby greater bargaining power. Employed work is more conditional among women with a lower education level, i.e., they may be employed but under the constraint that they are still responsible for care and domestic work in the family. Another constraint in this group where many work part-time is the lack of available full-time positions in the labor market.

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