Launched by the Jospin government on the 1st of January 2002, this 11 successive day's break (18 in case of multiple births) has been added to the 3 already entitled days since then by the labor law. It is open to every father namely wage-earners, independent workers, farming workers, civil servants or even fathers fulfilling the role in the 4 months following the birth of a child.
The indemnity amounts to 100% of the gross income, in the limit of the security social ceiling (2352€ in 2002). The maximum amount of the day indemnity is consequently of 78.4€ gross, i.e. 62.88€ after deducting the social contributions. The calculation of this indemnity is the same as for the maternity leave. It is financed by the national child benefit office. In 2002 it cost 180 million euros.
The father shall inform his employer of the date and the duration of his leave one month before the chosen date. The employer has no right to forbid the employee to take his leave, neither the right to change the dates chosen by the employee.
[...] II Freezing and limits of the paternity leave The snags met in companies The reasons evoked by those who do not benefit from the paternity leave are mainly professional or financial, for instance a too important loss for the upper crust, managers, retailers, craftsmen or a far too huge burden of work in the small companies and in the big, rigid and requiring companies. Globally, the higher the income is, the more fathers grant priority to their professional activities, and the less they tend to balance the professional sphere and the familial one. [...]
[...] Last but not least, the paternity leave is decided in 2002. 3°The example of the Scandinavian countries With these three days of leave for “family solidarity”, France used to be in the European average, at the same level as countries such as Germany, Italy, Great Britain and Spain. But the attractiveness of the Scandinavian social model has shown the path to follow. The Danish fathers have since 1983 two weeks of leave, the Finnish 18 days and the Swedish can have thanks to a recent law of 2002 under certain conditions a 60 days leave instead of 30 days. [...]
[...] The snag met in society The paternity leave is about to benefit to fathers who can and have the will to invest in their daily children life of wage-earner women take the authorized break when their child is ill whereas only 34% of men do the same, namely two third are not or cannot bypass the traditional scheme. Is the success of the paternity leave a windfall effect or is it relevant of the modification in the family structure, perception and role? [...]
[...] It is actually be made possible thanks to the mentalities and society evolutions whilst it participates to the acceleration of this process. The creation of the paternity leave has consequently a strong symbolic meaning: It implies in work organization that male workers are also fathers. Men talk and think more often and freely of their children at work, it is no longer a female activity! Thus the paternity leave seems to have found its way. Everything that enables fathers to take a more active part in educative tasks is a good thing, it simply improves the equality between [...]
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