Illustration of hands of a father and his baby.

-

Pixabay

  • The duration of paternity leave will be doubled from July 1, 2021. It will go from 11 days currently to 25.

  • A decision that echoes the report on the "first 1,000 days of the child" of the commission chaired by neuropsychiatrist Boris Cyrulnik, report submitted to the government on Tuesday evening.

  • The latter recommended extending paternity leave to nine weeks.

More time to hug her baby and organize her new family life.

Emmanuel Macron will announce this Wednesday the extension of paternity leave during a trip to the Childhood Center and Maternal and Child Protection Center (PMI) in Longjumeau (Essonne).

"Its duration will be doubled," says the Elysee.

From July 1, 2021, it will go from 11 days (weekend included) currently to 25 days (weekend included also).

They will be added to the three days to which fathers are already entitled upon the birth of a child or the arrival in the home of an adopted child.

Or 28 days to nurture, compared to 14 days today (11 + 3).

A decision which echoes the report on the “first 1,000 days of the child” by the commission chaired by neuropsychiatrist Boris Cyrulnik, delivered this Tuesday evening to the Secretary of State for Children and Families, Adrien Taquet.

Report which advocated extending paternity leave to nine weeks.

The recommendation was therefore not followed.

"This period did not win the votes of the French," says one at the Elysee.

Moreover, the cost of the measure would not have been the same for public finances.

Especially since according to the government's calculations, the extension of paternity leave which will be announced on Wednesday "will already cost 260 million euros in 2021 (since the measure will not come into force until July 1) and double it in the following years. , or around 500 million [over a full year] ”, indicates the Elysee.

A consensus measure

This announcement also responds to "a societal expectation, because 80% of French people say they are in favor of extending paternity leave," said the entourage of Emmanuel Macron.

And which allows France to "join the peloton of European countries offering the longest paternity leave, such as Spain, Finland, Norway, Portugal".

The expected benefits of such a measure for father-child relationships are obvious: "Time is an important factor for the father to be able to form a bond of attachment with his baby", underlines the Elysee.

"The fact that from the start, the father leans as often on the cradle as the mother will deconstruct the stereotypical roles in the daily life of couples and strengthen the emotional security of the child", adds Marie Donzel, associate director at the breast from AlterNego, an expert in social innovation.

A decision also welcomed by Marie-Andrée Blanc, president of the National Union of Family Associations (Unaf): “More and more men want to invest in co-parenting.

But we would have liked the duration to be even longer, ”she says.

"This extended paternity leave will help alleviate the mental burden on mothers"

But that's not all.

It is also a strong gesture in favor of gender equality, "because the burden of the first days still rests too much on women", underlines the Elysee.

An opinion shared by

Marie Donzel: “This extended paternity leave will make it possible to lighten the mental burden on mothers, because fathers will be able to share with them the establishment of family responsibilities.

And they will be able to support them better after the bodily trauma they suffered during childbirth, ”she says.

It is also a signal sent to companies: "This shows the employee's entry into parenthood and obliges the employer to take it into account in the organization of work", underlines Marie Donzel.

Yes, but here it is, if paternity leave is already a right, it is clear that not all employees take it up.

“The rate of use of this optional leave, compensated by health insurance, is 67%.

It has changed very little since its creation in 2002, ”says the Elysee.

And employees on fixed-term contracts are even less numerous than others to take it up (50%).

If they do not take advantage of this right, "it is because of their workload and their fear of requesting this leave from their employer," explains the Elysee.

But according to Marie-Andrée Blanc, this is not the only explanation: “Not all employers compensate for the part of the remuneration not covered by Social Security.

So some employees do not take their paternity leave for financial reasons ”.

To ensure that paternity leave is used more, the government has decided that a part must be taken by fathers.

Without specifying for the time being the number of days that will be affected.

But for Marie Donzel, "it would have to be imposed in its entirety for it to be fully effective".

Another suggestion from Marie-Andrée Blanc: “Open it up to the liberal professions and the self-employed”.

World

Finland: Paternity leave will last seven months, like maternity leave, from 2021

Society

Report recommends extending paternity leave to nine weeks

  • Baby

  • Government

  • Family

  • Society

  • Paternity leave