While all 27 EU member states now provide paid parental leave in line with the directive on work-life balance for parents and carers, the way the measure is implemented varies widely across the bloc. Significant disparities remain regarding transferability, duration, the period during which parents may take the leave, and the level of compensation provided. Moreover, nearly three years after the directive entered into force, some countries still fall short of the standards required under EU law.
By establishing a minimum parental leave of four months for each parent (17 weeks), including two non-transferable to the other parent, European legislators aimed to promote a better sharing of family responsibilities and thus improve professional equality between women and men. The European directive on work-life balance for parents and carers, adopted in 2019, has thus enabled real progress in many countries, such as Hungary, for example, where no parental leave existed until then. However, w
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Article authors
Nathalie Tran
Editor-in-Chief Mind HR
Caroline Soutarson
Datajournaliste
Datajournaliste au sein du groupe mind. Ex-cheffe de rubrique Investissement chez mind Fintech.