Check out 16 Return-To-Work Programs In India For Ambitious Women Like You!
Paternity leave is the way to go if men are to share parental duties from early parenthood. In fact, a better idea is shared parental leave.
Paternity leave is the right of men, and a great step towards gender equality. In fact, a better idea is shared parental leave.
If women are to advance in male dominated fields, then men should be given a chance to share in the roles that have been traditionally dumped on women.
I was reading a blog post that mentioned that women find it difficult to break the news about pregnancy in the workplace. The post said, women worry about people thinking “Oh there she goes on a long paid vacation of 4 months, wish we could get that”.
But that got me wondering. Why do men not get paternity leave? After all, the father is just as much responsible for the baby as the mother. So why should the work place expect only moms to take on all the baby care duties? It seems unfair to both moms and dads.
Since 1955, government jobs in India provide for 15 days of paternity leave, though this does not apply to the private sector. However this is not the kind of paternity leave I am talking about.
Apart from physical and emotional recovery post delivery, there is no reason to believe that the mother needs more leave than the father. How a couple shares their baby care responsibilities is for the couple to decide based on their circumstances.
The idea behind SPL is that, the total maternity leave is shared between the parents as per their convenience, in the first few months after the baby is born.
Breast feeding is about the only baby care duty a father cannot perform as well as a mother. Exclusive breast feeding is recommended for at least the first 6 months. So that is why maternity leave in many places has been extended from 3 to 6 months.
However today there are a number of breast pumping devices and safe ways to store breast milk for short periods. So this is not a real hurdle for those couples that would prefer to split their parental duties.
Women face many problems as a side effect of maternity leave that can be eliminated by having SPL.
There can never be equality in the workplace unless there is also equality at home. To close the gender pay gap and break the glass ceilings, it is important for society to encourage men to undertake a greater share of household responsibilities. This is never going to be possible with gender biased policies like only maternity leave instead of SPL.
That is not to say that the work place should decide how a particular couple splits their SPL. Some couples may choose to use it entirely for the woman and others entirely for the man and many more, to split it in whatever way suits them. Some may choose to use all of it at once and others may choose to have the woman take the first month off and the man the next and then again the woman and so on.
This kind of flexibility will help both men and women find a good work-life balance and have successful careers along with happy family lives.
Shared parental leave has been implemented effectively in some countries. It does require some additional paperwork for co-ordination between companies, and many details need to be worked out for smooth implementation, and probably some governmental interference, but is a worth a try. Norway has gone so far as to incentivize paternal leave to encourage men to undertake baby care duties.
However, in most countries, men taking parental leave is quite limited. Some men worry about how it will affect their careers and others worry about how it is perceived. According to this article though, parental leave for men, is slowly becoming more acceptable. In India, most men may not avail of it to start with, but social change takes time. But one must begin somewhere and the option of SPL is a good place to start.
If respected and reputable organizations show that they expect men to play a significant role child rearing, it will go a long way in bringing about the required social change.
Join the Women’s Web Network for women at work by filling in the form below. You will receive a monthly newsletter from us with great resources, plus we’ll keep you posted on all Women’s Web events in your city!
Email Format
Image source: Free Images
Kanika G, a physicist by training and a mother of 2 girls, started writing to entertain her older daughter with stories, thus opening the flood gates on a suppressed passion. Today she has written over read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
People say that women are the greatest enemies of women. I vehemently disagree. It is the patriarchal mindset that makes women believe in the wrong ideology.
The entire world celebrates International Women’s Day on March 8, 2024. It should be a joyful day, but unfortunately, not all women are entitled to this privilege, as violence against women is at its peak. The experience of oppression pushes many women to choose freedom. As far as patriotism is concerned, feminism is not a cup of tea in this society.
What happens when a woman decides to stand up for herself? Does this world easily accept the decisions of women in this society? What inspires them to be free of the clutches of the oppression that women have faced for ages? Most of the time, women do not get the chance to decide for themselves. Their lives are always at the mercy of someone, which can be their parents, siblings, husband, or children.
In some cases, women do not feel the need to make any decisions. They are taught to obey the patriarchal system, which makes them believe that they are right. In my family, I was never taught to make decisions on my own. It was always my parents who bought dresses and all that I needed.
14 years after her last feature film Dhobi Ghat, storyteller extraordinaire comes up with her new film, Laapataa Ladies, a must watch.
*Some spoilers alert*
Every religion around the world dictates terms to women. The onus is always on women to be ‘modest’ and cover their faces and bodies so men can’t be “tempted”, rather than on men to keep their eyes where they belong and behave like civilized beings. So much so that even rape has been excused on the grounds of women eating chowmein or ‘men will be men’. I think the best Hindi movie retort to this unwanted advice on ‘akeli ladki khuli tijori ki tarah hoti hai’ (an alone woman is like an open jewellery box) came from Geet in Jab We Met – Kya aap gyan dene ke paise lete hain kyonki chillar nahin hain mere paas.
The premise of Laapataa Ladies is beautifully simple – two brides clad in the ghunghat that covers their identity get mixed up on a train. Within this Russian Doll, you get a comedy of errors, a story of getting lost, a commentary on patriarchy’s attitude towards women, a mystery, and a tale of finding oneself, all in one. Done with a mostly light touch that has you laughing and nodding along.
Please enter your email address