ILO Urges Action to Close Gender Gap in Paid Parental Leave Worldwide

A new report from the International Labour Organization (ILO) has revealed a staggering global gender disparity in paid parental leave, with mothers receiving an average of 24.7 weeks of leave compared to just 2.2 weeks for fathers. The 22.5-week gap—more than five months—is reinforcing long-standing inequalities both at home and in the workforce, according to the ILO's newly launched Care Economy Brief series.

Published to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Maternity Protection Convention, 2000 (No. 183), the report titled "Closing the Gender Gap in Paid Parental Leaves" calls for urgent reforms in global labour policies. The ILO argues that non-transferable, adequately paid, and universally accessible parental leave for both mothers and fathers is critical for achieving real gender equality.

A Persistent Global Inequity in Care

According to the brief, 57% of the global population lives in countries where women are entitled to three to six months more paid leave than men. In 28 countries, the difference in leave duration exceeds one year. Startlingly, in 71 countries, fathers receive no statutory paid parental leave whatsoever.

The result? A disproportionate burden of caregiving falls on women, directly impacting their ability to enter and remain in the workforce. In 2023 alone, 708 million women of working age were out of the labour force due to unpaid care responsibilities, compared to just 40 million men.

“This gap reinforces gender inequalities at home and in the labour market,” said Sukti Dasgupta, Director of the ILO’s Conditions of Work and Equality Department. “Policy design must address not only the duration of leave but its accessibility and cultural acceptance. If men don’t take the leave, women will always carry more of the caregiving load.”

Underlying Causes: Funding, Culture, and Policy Design

The ILO brief outlines multiple reasons for the persistent gap in paid parental leave:

• Lack of job protection discourages men from taking time off.

• Inadequate pay during leave periods disincentivizes participation, especially in male-dominated cultures where men are primary earners.

• Employer-financed models place the burden on companies, deterring them from encouraging uptake.

• Transferable leave systems often see women taking the entire allotment, reinforcing traditional gender roles.

To truly transform caregiving dynamics, the ILO advocates for non-transferable leave entitlements—an approach successfully used in countries like Sweden, where “use-it-or-lose-it” quotas for fathers have significantly increased male participation in early childcare.

The Cost of Change—and Its Benefits

The ILO estimates that offering 14 weeks of paid leave at 67% of previous earnings to all women and men would require an annual global investment of US$142 billion by 2035. While this might appear costly, it represents a modest increase—just 0.13% of global GDP.

Regionally, the cost varies:

• Europe and Central Asia: 0.08% of GDP

• Asia and the Pacific: 0.15%

• Latin America: 0.20%

• Arab States: 0.49%

However, the potential return is immense. The ILO projects that such an investment could create over four million formal jobs worldwide, particularly benefiting women and informal workers who are often excluded from statutory parental benefits.

Lessons from Around the World

The brief highlights examples from multiple countries that have narrowed the gap or restructured their systems:

• Spain has eliminated the gender gap by adopting a gender-neutral parental leave system.

• Singapore recently reformed its shared leave model to ensure both parents have access to at least three weeks of paid leave, which will rise to five weeks by 2026.

• Nordic nations, including Sweden and Norway, have demonstrated that when paternity leave is well-paid, job-protected, and non-transferable, uptake by fathers increases significantly.

• Seychelles, Costa Rica, Denmark, Mongolia, and Oman have implemented mixed-financing models to expand access for informal workers and non-nationals.

Four Key Policy Recommendations

To close the parental leave gap and promote gender equality, the ILO outlines the following actions:

1. Ratify and Align with Convention No. 183 Countries must ratify and implement the ILO Maternity Protection Convention to ensure job security, shift financing responsibility away from employers, and provide universal access.

2. Recognize Fathers as Caregivers Design and promote well-paid, job-protected, non-transferable paternity leave to normalize and support men's participation in early childcare.

3. Provide Paid Leave to Each Parent Individually Establish entitlements that are parent-specific, not household-based, with flexible arrangements such as part-time leave to encourage uptake by men.

4. Ensure Inclusive Financing and Coverage Integrate parental leave into national social protection systems, extending benefits to informal workers and those in non-standard employment.

Toward Equality in Care and Work

The ILO’s brief serves as both a diagnosis and a roadmap. While many nations have taken important steps forward in maternity protection, far fewer have created frameworks that empower men to play an equal role in childcare. The result is a perpetuation of gender gaps in income, leadership, and labour force participation.

“Paid parental leave isn’t just about time off work—it’s about reshaping social norms, promoting economic equality, and creating a future where caregiving is a shared responsibility,” said Dasgupta.

As more countries rethink the structure of their labour policies in a post-pandemic world, the ILO hopes this new evidence will inspire governments to adopt policies that truly value and support all caregivers—regardless of gender.