What are the effects of reforms promoting fathers’ parental leave use?

Abstract

Since the introduction of parental leave in Sweden a more gender-equal division of such leave has been targeted. In 1995 one month was reserved for each parent, implying that the month was forfeited if not used by the same parent. A second month was reserved in 2002. In 2008, a gender equality bonus was introduced, meaning that tax credits were given to parents who shared the leave equally. This study investigates the effects of these reforms on parental leave use by means of a difference-in-difference approach with parents of children born just before and just after the introduction of each reform. We use register data from the Swedish Social Insurance Agency, which include all parents residing in Sweden. The results indicate a strong effect on parental leave use resulting from the introduction of the first reserved month, a more modest but clear effect resulting from the second reserved month and, so far, no effect resulting from the gender equality bonus. Possible interpretations of the results are that (1) reserved time may be more effective than an economic bonus, (2) change from low levels of use may be easier and (3) reforms may matter most when they are first introduced.

Fathers on Leave Alone in Portugal: Lived Experiences and Impact of Forerunner Fathers

“…A fi rst major strand of research has focused on gender equality incentives and the factors which facilitate or hinder father's take-up (Bygren and Duvander 2006 ;Chronholm 2002 ;Duvander and Johansson 2012 ;Haas et al 2002 ;Haas and Rostgaard 2011 ;LammiTaskula 2008 ;Pajumets 2010 ). Cultural, workplace, conjugal, and social variables have been shown to infl uence fathers' use of leave.…”

Fathers on call? A study on the sharing of care work between parents in Sweden

“…The fathers' share of the days for children under two years of age was slightly lower, about 19% in 2009 (Duvander and Viklund 2014). The introduction of the second reserved month in 2002 resulted in a small increase of 6-7 days in fathers' as well as mothers' average parental leave uptake (Duvander and Johansson 2012). In the period studied, the parental leave insurance could be utilized until the child turned eight years old.…”

“…The right for fathers to take paid parental leave is likely to strengthen this 'new fatherhood' ideal, particularly if gender equality is a main goal of the policy, as in Sweden (Haas and Rostgaard 2011;Hobson, Duvander, and Halldén 2006). In particular, quotas for fathers have encouraged fathers to spend time as sole daytime caregivers of young children (Bergman and Hobson 2002;Duvander and Johansson 2012;Haas and Rostgaard 2011).…”

Unequal Family Lives

“…Many of the Scandinavian countries (and Quebec) have developed policies to address the second half of the gender revolution directly, by encouraging men to take a portion of what is now called "family" (rather than "maternity") leave (Duvander and Johansson 2015). Such policies require that, to gain, and not lose, the full benefit, each parent has to take some of the paid leave.…”