Gender, Work, & Family in Cross-Cultural Perspectives

Maternity/Paternity Leave

Denmark provides some of the most generous parental leave rights and benefits to their labor force. Their policies place it near the top when it comes to achieving gender equality in the labor force. These parental leave policies are not only accepted by the public, but they are the law of the land.

Maternal Leave

Denmark has some of the best paid maternal leave policies in the world. Their policies are extensive and extremely beneficial to mothers who are dedicated to their careers but need time to take care of their children after birth without being afraid of losing their jobs. These include:

18 weeks of paid leave, with mothers receiving 100% of their salaries at the time, up to $321 per week.
In practice this is equal to 60% of prior wages.
Many employers fill in the gap with 80% of mothers receiving 100% wage replacement.

Paternal Leave

Women are not the only ones who benefit from the leave policies of Denmark. Men also receive paternal leave benefits. These include:

10 days of paternity leave
Paternal leave benefits are the same as maternal leave benefits (100% wage reimbursement, approx. 60% in practice)
Many employers “top up” resulting in 100% wage reimbursement for most employees.

Three specific strategies exist for encouraging men to take up paternal leave benefits. These include:

High wage replacement rates.
Use or Lose policies that encourage the father to take off or else the time off will be lost.
Public education campaigns reduce cultural and institutional resistance to leave taking by fathers by altering public and private discourse about fathers taking part in caregiving.

Recent changes in legislation have resulted in extensive changes in leave policy.

Table: Paternal and Maternity Leave Legislation

Type of Leave	Pre-2002 Legislation	2002 to Present Day Legislation
Pregnancy Leave	Four weeks	Four weeks
Maternity Leave, compulsory	Two weeks after birth	Two weeks after birth
Maternity/Childbirth Leave, available only to mother	12 weeks	12 weeks
Maternity/Childbirth Leave, available to either parent	10 weeks to be taken by either parent	32 weeks individual entitlement for both parents
Childcare Leave	Up to 52 weeks available to both parents	Abolished
Paternity Leave, not compulsorily	Two weeks after birth, plus two weeks following 14^th week after birth	Two weeks after birth

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References:

OECD. Babies and bosses : reconciling work and family life. 2002. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.