Extra birth leave popular with fathers: ‘Culture change, which takes some time’ | Family

This is evident from the evaluation of the Extra Birth Leave Act (WIEG), which came into effect in 2019 and was expanded as of 2020. Since then, fathers or partners in employment have been allowed to add another five weeks after a week of paid birth leave. Those five weeks of extra leave are partly reimbursed by the UWV.

The evaluation shows that fathers and partners who use the additional birth leave mainly do so to spend more time with their newborn child. Minister Karien van Gennip (Social Affairs and Employment) has sent this to the House of Representatives.

Of the 26 percent who did not take additional leave, nearly half said they did not need it. They started working less or stopped working altogether. A large part of that 26 percent had wanted to use it themselves, but indicated that they could not afford it financially.

The WIEG will not be changed after this evaluation, writes Van Gennip. The evaluation does not justify this. It is also about a ‘cultural change, which takes some time’.

In addition, the corona measures have ‘almost certainly’ had an influence on the use and effects of additional birth leave, says the minister. “Measures such as working from home changed the distribution of (extra) care tasks.”

The uncertainty about the economic situation or the loss of income as a result of the corona crisis may also have influenced the use of the extra birth leave, according to the evaluation.

It is too early to draw conclusions about the intended effects of the WIEG, writes Van Gennip, such as making a positive contribution to the bond between the child and the partner. The law also aims to increase women’s opportunities on the labor market.