Absent Fathers? Non-Standard Employment and Inequalities in Paternity Leave Take-up
From its introduction in 2002 to its reform in 2021, the two-week paternity leave was an immediate success. Short, generous, and consistent with contemporary norms of ‘involved fathering’, it ensured high take-up rates. In this context, it is not so much the fathers who take their leave, but those who forgo it that raises questions: in the majority, men without stable salaried employment.
Take-up rates are remarkably low for fathers on short-term contracts (58%), self-employed fathers (33%), and job seekers claiming benefits (20%), compared to fathers with permanent contracts (80%). Why are these men particularly inclined to forfeit this right?
Due to social desirability biases, it is uncommon to find extensive testimonies from fathers who do not take paternity leave. This article uses mixed methods to explore the mechanisms underlying non-take-up. It combines the Mode de garde et d’accueil des jeunes enfants survey conducted by the French ministry in 2021 (N=8,351) with 87 longitudinal qualitative interviews with 32 fathers—11 without stable employment—before and after the birth of their last child.
Drawing on insights from political sociology, the results reveal that non-take-up does not necessarily reflect a lack of interest in the policy or a decision to prioritize work. Fathers in non-standard employment face various informational and administrative barriers at different stages of the leave-claiming process. Many take informal breaks that serve the same purpose as paternity leave but without compensation—blurring the distinction between those who take leave and those who don’t.
In a context where non-standard employment is rising across Europe, this presentation discusses more generally social inequalities in how families can exercise their rights.