The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) and the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) have published a new report: “Child Related Leave: Usage and Implications for Gender Equality.”
This report examines the usage of child-related leave benefits in Ireland and their implications for gender equality in the workplace.
The report highlights several key findings:
“Norms and Workplace Attitudes: The report also explores societal norms and workplace attitudes towards child-related leave. A survey experiment found high levels of support for ensuring that fathers have 100% of their earnings covered while on leave and for ring-fencing part of child-related leave for fathers only.”
Gender Income Gap: Despite rising female participation rates in Ireland, a significant gender income gap persists, primarily driven by lower female participation rates and a higher incidence of part-time employment. This gap often starts after the birth of a child and continues throughout a woman’s lifetime.
Child-Related Leave Policies: The recent introduction of Paternity Leave and Parent’s Leave in Ireland has been a positive move. However, the take-up rates of these benefits remain low with only around half of fathers availing of Paternity leave and a quarter taking Parent’s Leave compared to two-thirds of mothers. The related welfare benefits paid are flat-rate so income-related concerns are a significant barriers to higher take-up rates along with workplace norms.
Administrative Data Analysis: Using a 10% sample of all births between 2019 and 2022, the report analyses the characteristics linked with the take-up of Paternity and Parent’s Benefit, as well as the duration of paid and unpaid Maternity Leave. The findings reveal that higher paid fathers, who are more likely to receive employer top-ups, were more likely to avail of Paternity Leave. Take-up was also higher for those working in larger companies where a replacement might be more readily available.
The publication can be downloaded here.