Paternity Leave Is a Feminist Issue

My partner is Danish, so for a variety of reasons that make sense in the short term, we've been living in Denmark for the past two years. We're a small family not looking to expand — we do well with just one cat in the mix — but were we to consider having kids, I can't think of a better place to do it.

This week, the New York Times has a terrific overview of the many advantages of encouraging paternity leave in Nordic countries and how much it benefits everyone. Focusing their coverage on Sweden (which has a markedly similar system to the one in Norway, Denmark, and Iceland), they report that 8 in 10 fathers take up to one third of the 13 months of paid leave, while 9% of fathers take 40% of the time or more. The article includes examples of countries, like Germany, that have used the Nordic model to encourage their own paternal population to take some "daddy leave" from work. From a feminist perspective, it's exciting to read about how well the ideas are spreading.

The way the Times initially describes it, men get to have it all under a system of equally paid paternity leave. But I think it's just the opposite: this is a huge boon for working mothers. The Swedish Institute of Labor Market Policy Evaluation reports that for every month of paternity leave a father takes, the mother's future earnings increase an average of 7%. How's that for closing the pay gap while spending some equal time with your kids? The Times also reports that Swedish separation and divorce rates have declined since more equal time off was enacted in 1995. And when couples do split up, joint custody is more common.

Of course, the article has some glaring inconsistencies, like an interview with a stay-at-home dad who claims he is relegated to a second-class parent status. While he may face some social resistance, I'm not terribly convinced it's a social problem any more than his own — especially when he admits he shrugs off certain responsibilities, knowing his wife will pick up the slack. Another father on paternity leave admits that he receives an undue amount of praise, while his wife hears nothing similar; she's expected to take time off, stay home.

I'd like to think that this model could provide an example for non-European countries and help solve the horrific male to female executive gap in the U.S. But it would be naive to assume that anything short of the same type of social welfare government support system could radically alter the maternity/paternity leave landscape in the states.

Anecdotally speaking from my experience in Copenhagen, it's still more common to see more women pushing their sidewalk-width prams around town on any given afternoon, but it certainly isn't uncommon to see men doing the same. They just usually have the little ones strapped into a cargo bike bucket instead.

Photo Credit: AdamSelwood