Two days of leave after the birth of your child. This was long the case for partners and fathers in the Netherlands. One day for the birth of your child and one day to declare your child. After that you were allowed to go back to work. The image always existed that mothers are much more important for parenting than fathers. It turns out that this is not so. Research contributed to adjusting the law. Since 2020, partners can take 5 weeks of parental leave. The expansion is good for several reasons. It increases partner involvement, more support for mothers and it benefits family dynamics.
Increasingly important what social class you come from
Where you were born matters more and more for children's development opportunities. This is also reflected in the extension of birth leave for partners. Additional birth leave proved an immediate success. But mostly among high-income families. That did not surprise family sociologist Renske Keijzer:
"The additional leave is paid at 70%. A family that struggles to make ends meet will not make it on 70% of its income. of Households earning more than 4,000 euros net per month took 85% birth leave. Among households earning less than 4,000 euros, it was only 63%. That creates inequality."
Our knowledge on parental leave
To help students, staff and society
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As an employer, we believe it is important to build a good relationship with your newborn child.
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How important are fathers in parenting?
Renske Keizer, professor of Family Sociology, spoke about the influence the family has on children's developmental outcomes, focusing on fathers and mothers.
Working on solutions during your studies
As a student, you can already do something to contribute to protecting equity. By choosing the right study, you can learn about policies and regulations to address. Or you can study more about family welfare and already be working on improvements in that area during your studies. Below are three courses on these topics.
