Because Parenthood is Important to Fathers Too

You’ve probably heard that maternity leave is a year long in Canada. This is not strictly true. If you are married and have a baby while both partners are employed and qualify for government (un)employment insurance, then parental leave is 50 weeks long (there is a two-week waiting period before you can collect the benefits.

Each partner in the marriage or common law relationship has the right to 25 weeks paid leave. The leave is paid for through the government unemployment insurance premiums. The first 17 weeks must be taken by the mother, but after that, the marriage partners can transfer their weeks to each other.

I always thought that most fathers transferred their leave entitlements to the child’s mother. According to an article in the Toronto Star today, that is just not true.  Statisitics Canada says that most new fathers do take at least some leave.

•   While the proportion of women who took leave for a child’s birth or adoption remained stable at nearly 90 per cent between 2001 and 2006, the proportion of men who did so increased from 38 per cent to 55 per cent during the same period, the newspaper reported.

Thank goodness that the majority of men can and do take the time to welcome their children into the world and help the family adjust to their new lives.