Earlier quoted context omitted.
Watching the beginning of Idiocracy might make the problem clear. https://youtu.be/YwZ0ZUy7P3E
That’s a fictional movie.
That doesn't mean it can't be a legitimate commentary on a non fictional problem.
Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
151–160 of 215 posts
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#152It would have been a more interesting article had it also went into the downsides of this approach. One specific concern is that mandatory paternity leave may discourage men from becoming fathers, further decreasing the birth rate which is already quite low in many advanced economies. Another is that if taking paternity leave impacts men's careers, then in many cases both parents will suffer such an impact, further d…
Make it mandatory leave. No kids? Oh, well, still have to stay home and play video games for six months.
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#153If such discrimination exists (it probably does), this will just change the bias to be against anyone who is part of a young, potentially child-bearing couple.
It also seems utterly against my rights as a human, and unconstitutional.
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#154Earlier quoted context omitted.
I’m okay with not subsidizing having kids if kids in the future don’t have to pay social security, dividends, etc., for people who didn’t have kids.
This is a choice we made in how we structure our governments though that doesn't make much sense on it's own. We could easily have a system where each generation pays for its OWN social security, you just let the government screw you by spending the current account on wars. Population is a much bigger question than a specific, stupid government fiscal policy.
Unless you "save for retirement" by putting canned food in a basement, all you're doing is arranging for some sort of entitlement to a share of the production of a future generation of workers. That's true whether you're talking about social security paid with tax dollars, dividends paid on stock holdings, etc. Those are all abstractions over an arrangement in which a working generation gives up some of the surplus of its labor to the retired generation.
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#155Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm a childless woman. This is by choice. I might consider adoption, but I have absolutely no desire to be pregnant nor give birth. I'm 40, by the way, and have known I didn't want children for at least 25 years. I'm happy to give parents time off. I'm happy parents get more sick days where I'm at to take care of their young children. I'm happy my taxes, in part, go to this. We actually need children. And parents hav…
I agree. I just don’t understand why offering (and enthusiastically encouraging people to take) as much paternity leave as maternit leave would be a negative thing in this context.
I'm not sure.
I think some folks are reacting to the forced paternity leave bit. And in one sense, I understand - but women don't realistically have those choices and I think most doctors would rather women didn't get right back to work. The other bit, as you've said in another reply, is that women get stuck with the assumption that she's going to take maternity leave and there is nothing the company can do about it. If it is extended to males, companies would have to worry about that with everyone and they'd rather not, thank-you-very-much.
Offering is, I think, is both wonderful and not enough. If I understand correctly (immigrant here), Norway used to require some paternity leave and had a portion of parental leave that could be split between the two parents. At some point, the government quit making paternity leave a requirement, but still leaving it in place if the father wanted it and still allowing parental leave to be split between the parents.
... and fewer fathers took paternity leave at that point.
The thing with not only offering but requiring such things is that it helps to change societal norms and expectations as long as they are offered for enough time. When it is simply optional, safeguards need to be put into place. I'm not the one to ask what the safeguards should be at the moment :)
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#156I've discussed this in the past. My company started offering 5 month paternity leave at the end of 2016. For a credit card company, this was huge. There had to have been a catch. I took the chance anyway, and got laid off. This isn't uncommon at the company either. I've heard of 3 females so far who also shared the same fate. All of thought it was illegal, but our individual lawyers pretty much summed it up in one se…
A wrongful termination lawsuit in a case like this should cost no money (contingency) and take very little time and energy, if you have the right lawyers. Arbitration would be even less commitment, with potentially less upside.
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#157Make men stay at home for paternity leave? I have a coworker fighting for the ability to stay at home for parental leave.
If you read the article you see why: men who take it are liable to face consequences ("what, you are so unimportant that the company can do with out you?") that clearly also affect women. The article discusses that if you make it mandatory you get the company culture to adapt that parental leave should not be a career-affecting thing.
Or you end up with companies that discriminate against parents of either sex. Then birth rates plummet even more and companies of the future struggle to find skilled workers.
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#158Bullcrap, we have a "paternity leave gap" in the Netherlands AND a wage gap
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#159We're thinking about the problem all wrong. Clearly the way to close the wage gap is to get women to stop having kids. Of course I'm not serious, but then I personally don't care if there is a wage gap as long as it is not being caused by workplace discrimination against women. If instead it's the case that the wage gap is caused by women (disproportionately to men) making an informed choice to de-prioritize work in…
While not huge the US tax system has a child tax credit https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/five-things-to-know-about-the-c...
Re: Mandatory paternity leave would help close the wage gap
#160How would you enforce men informing their company that they recently became a father?
Do you really think that new fathers aren't going to enroll their child in health insurance, and take advantage of tax deductions?
That doesn't apply here in Canada. If I were a new father in the US, faced with taking a massive pay cut for forced paternity leave, I'd pick up the insurance for my child at retail.
Heck, in high pressure firms where anyone taking parental leave is inviting career stagnation or termination (fully justified by having HR set up a paper trail of unsatisfactory performance evaluations), you'd be downright crazy to disclose the birth of your child.