Norway, Switzerland, United States… How is paternity leave going elsewhere?

In The Hague, a father and his baby in front of a Mondrian painting during a visit organized for newborns in 2017. -

• The government announced on Tuesday evening the extension to 28 days (25 days + 3 days of leave at birth) of paternity leave from 2021.

• France thus hopes to make up part of its delay compared to the best European students in the field, led by Norway.

• While these systems are evolving all over the world, strong disparities have been created between the different countries.

In 2002, when paternity leave appeared in France, France could boast of being at the forefront in Europe.

Eighteen years later, and while it will grant 25 days to young dads from mid-2021, against 11 currently, it is largely exceeded by several countries in Europe or elsewhere in the world, which have adopted more ambitious measures.

A brief overview of what fathers benefit from around the world.

Which country was the first to introduce father's leave?

In 1993, it was Norway that provided for the first time a non-transferable parental leave reserved for fathers.

But the existence of a parental leave to be distributed between the father and the mother was established well before this date.

Already in 1977 in this country, fathers could draw from the 18 weeks granted to the mother to enjoy their infant, recalls

.

Who are the winners in all categories of paternity leave?

Unsurprisingly, the Scandinavians won the day, and in particular Norway.

The country has one of the most ambitious systems in the world, which is constantly evolving.

The latest reform, which dates from 2019, provides for three weeks for the couple at birth.

Then, the law provides for 15 weeks for the mother, 15 weeks for the father and 16 weeks to be distributed as they see fit.

In Sweden, parental leave can last up to 480 days.

Parents, both equally concerned by this system, are paid 80% of their salary.

Two months are compulsory.

In Finland, 54 days of paid leave are offered to fathers.

In addition to this quota, the two parents share 26 weeks of parental leave, paid between 70 and 90% of the salary, according to

.

Which countries are at the forefront of paternity leave in Europe?

The legislation on the subject is evolving rapidly at the international level: in April 2019 the European Union introduced a minimum standard of 10 days of paternity leave, remunerated at the level of the sickness benefit in each Member State.

The Spaniards extended the length of paternity leave to two months in the spring.

In 2021, it should increase to 16 weeks.

In Portugal, the young dad is entitled to five weeks of paternity leave, four of which are compulsory, to which can be added up to 150 days of parental leave to be shared with the mother.

In Germany, paternity leave does not exist, but both parents share parental leave for a total of 14 months.

Austria has experienced a small revolution since last year: Parliament adopted a month's leave for men, paid 700 euros.

Which countries are lagging behind?

With its seven days of paternity leave, Italy is one of the bad pupils.

Closely followed by Hungary, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands, where paternity leave is calculated in relation to the number of hours worked.

Greece, she only plans two days off.

Switzerland is one of the few countries in geographic Europe not to have introduced father's leave.

In September 2019, Swiss parliamentarians however started a shift by voting for a two-week paternity leave, to be taken during the six months following the birth of the child.

The measure must now be approved by a popular referendum, scheduled for September 27.

In Japan, if the policy is rather generous in terms of parental leave (parental leave of one year after the birth of a child for both parents), the approach is still very stigmatized for fathers.

The latest example: a Canadian sued his Japanese employer in October 2019, accusing him of harassing and firing him because he had requested paternity leave.

But that could change: in January, Japanese Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, the youngest in government, announced his intention to go on paternity leave, a first in the country.

Are there countries where this principle does not exist?

Globally, nearly two-thirds of children under the age of 1 live in a country where no paid paternity leave is established, according to Unicef.

Ninety-two countries do not have national policies in place to guarantee new fathers adequate paid time off with their newborns, including India and Nigeria - which have high child populations.

By comparison, other countries with large child populations, notably Brazil and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, have national policies for paid paternity leave, although they offer relatively short-term entitlements.

"There is still a lot of work to be done," said the organization, because "eight countries around the world, including the United States, have no maternity or paternity leave policy."

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