Authorities, firms urged to support more flexible parental leave

Civil society groups on Wednesday called for support from the government and enterprises for law amendments that would allow for more flexible parental leave.

Parents should be allowed to apply for parental leave by the day or even by the hour, until their children turn 8, Childcare Policy Alliance spokeswoman Huang Chiao-ling (???) said at a press conference in Taipei.

This would allow parents to more flexibly arrange their time for work and parenting, without having to compromise either, said Huang.

According to the Act of Gender Equality in Employment, parents are entitled to parental leave totaling up to two years after their child is born and before that child is 3 years old.

During that period, each parent can apply for parental leave twice, with each parental leave lasting for at least 30 days.

Currently, the Employment Insurance Act stipulates that parents are entitled to monthly parental leave allowances for up to six months before their children turn 3.

Huang told the CNA that the Childcare Policy Alliance worked with Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lin Shu-fen (???) last year to propose amendments to the two acts to the Legislature.

However, not much progress has been made at the Legislative Yuan since then, according to Huang.

Huang urged the Cabinet to support the motion by sponsoring its version of the amendment bills, so that the relevant legislative committees could start reviewing competing bills soon.

Lin, meanwhile, told the press conference that the proposed law amendments would not increase the cost for companies because maximum parental leave would remain at two years.

She urged the government and companies to recognize the needs of parents and support the revisions.

DPP Legislator Wu Yu-chin (???) criticized the Ministry of Labor (MOL), which is the competent authority for the two acts, for resisting the law revisions by repeatedly saying that a majority of businesses were opposed to more flexible parental leave.

The ministry’s most recent surveys showed that only 47.1 percent of companies supported the idea, as opposed to over 75 percent of employees favoring it.

Wu said that if the MOL continued to refuse to change its position and take action to improve parental leave rules, “no young people would want to have babies.”

According to the group, the proposed amendments are part of efforts to promote a friendlier work environment for parents with newborns and young children.

The group went on to say that women would be more willing to have children and continue working after giving birth, if they are assured of having a friendly work environment.

The birth rate and the number of working women can only be effectively increased when the government improves parental leave, increases public childcare services, and promotes equal parenting, Childcare Policy Alliance convener Liu Yu-hsiu (???) said.

Other groups who attended the press conference to show their support for the proposed amendments were the Awakening Foundation, the Taiwan Labor Front, and the Taiwan Parents Education Alliance.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel