Parental leave and beyond: some reflections on 30 years of international networking

Peter Moss

doi:10.22325/fes/res.2018.31

Authors

Peter Moss Thomas Coram Research Unit. UCL Institute of Education. University College London.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22325/fes/res.2018.31

Keywords:

Parental leave, work-life relations, gender equality, lifecourse

Abstract

The article starts by introducing the international network on leave policies and research. Based on the author’s experience of coordinating and working with this network, including the production of an annual review that now includes 40 countries, the remainder of the article considers some current issues in leave policy and some future possible directions for policy and research. The issues include the place of leave in wider ‘reconciliation’ and ‘equality’ policies; the design of leave policies; the inadequate state of statistics on leave policies; and the voice of the child in formulating leave policies. While there are many possible directions for future development, this article discusses moving from the current narrow focus on early parenthood to a broader lifecourse model.

Author Biography

Peter Moss , Thomas Coram Research Unit. UCL Institute of Education. University College London.

Emeritus Professor of Early Childhood Provision at UCL Institute of Education, University College London. He has researched and written on many subjects including early childhood education and care; the relationship between employment, care and gender; and democracy in education. Much of his work has been cross-national, and he has led a European network on childcare and an international network on parental leave. Recently he has worked with Reggio Emilia to produce an English-language book of the work of Loris Malaguzzi – Loris Malaguzzi and the Schools of Reggio Emilia: A selection of his writings and speeches, 1945-1993. He is currently co-editing a book titled Parental Leave and beyond: recent developments, current issues and future directions, which includes a chapter on the evolution of leave policy in Spain between 2007 and 2017

References

Ackerman, B., Alstott, A., Van Parijs, P. (2005). Re- designing Redistribution: Income and Stake- holder Grants as Alternative Cornerstones for a more Egalitarian Capitalism. London: Verso.

Adams, L., Winterbotham, M., Oldfield, K., McLeish, J., Large, L., Stuart, A., Murphy, L., Rossiter, H. and Selner, S. (2016). Pregnancy and Maternity- related Discrimination and Disadvantage: Summary of key findings. London: HM Government & Equality and Human Rights Commission. (Available at https://www.equalityhumanrights. com/en/managing-pregnancy-and-maternity- workplace/pregnancy-and-maternity-discrimination-research-findings)

Blum, S., Erler, D. and Reimer, T. (2016). Germany country note, in A. Koslowski, S.Blum and P. Moss (eds.) International Review of Leave Policies and Research 2016. (Available at: http:// www.leavenetwork.org/lp_and_r_reports/)

Einarsdóttir, T. and Pétursdóttir, G. M. (2009). Ice- land: from reluctance to fast-track engineer- ing, in S.B.Kamerman and P. Moss (eds.) The Politics of Parental leave Policies: Children, pa- renting, gender and the labour market. Bristol: Policy Press.

Erler, D. (2009) Germany: Taking a Nordic turn?’, in S.B.Kamerman and P. Moss (eds.) The Politics of Parental leave Policies: Children, parenting, gender and the labour market. Bristol: Policy Press.

Eurostat (2016). Population structure and ageing (Available at http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/sta- tistics-explained/index.php/Population_structure_and_ageing).

Eydal, G. B. and Gíslason, I. V. (2016). Iceland country note, in A. Koslowski, S. Blum and P. Moss (ed.) International Review of Leave Policies and Research 2016. (Available at: http://www. leavenetwork.org/lp_and_r_reports/).

Eydal, G. B., Gíslason, I. V., Rostgaard, T., Brandth, B., Duvander, A.-Z. and Lammi-Taskula, J. (2015). Trends in parental leave in the Nordic countries: has the forward march of gender equality halted?, Community, Work and Family, 15 (2), 167-181.

Fraser, N. (1997). After the family wage: A post- industrial thought experiment, In Justice Inte- rruptus: Critical Reflections on the “Postsocialist” Condition. New York: Routledge.

Facer, K. (2011). Learning Future: Education, Technology and Social Change. London: Routledge.

Frey, C.B. and Osborne, M.A. (2013). The Future of Employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation? Oxford: Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford. (Available at: http://www. oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/downloads/academic/ future-of-employment.pdf).

Fusulier, B. (2009). The European directive: ma- king supra-national parental leave policy, in S.B.Kamerman and P. Moss (eds.) The Politics of Parental leave Policies: Children, parenting, gender and the labour market. Bristol: Policy Press.

Harari, Y.N. (2016). Homo Deus: A brief history of tomorrow. London: Harvill Sacker

Hwang, P. (1999). Parental leave in Sweden, in P. Moss and F. Deven (eds.) Parental leave: Progress or Pitfall?, Brussels: NIDI CBGS.

Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) (2016). Future Proof: Briatin in the 20102s. London: IPPR (Available at: http://www.ippr.org/fi- les/publications/pdf/future-proof_Dec2016. pdf?noredirect=1

Kamerman, S. and Moss, P. (2009). Conclusion, in S.B.Kamerman and P. Moss (eds.) The Politics of Parental leave Policies: Children, parenting, gender and the labour market. Bristol: Policy Press.

Kvande, E. (2012). Control in post-bureaucratic or- ganizations: consequences for fathering practices, in M.Oeschle, U.Müller and S.Hess (Eds.) Fatherhood in Late Modern Times (pp. 232-248). Opladen: Verlag Barbara Budrich.

McKay, L., Mathieu, S. and Doucet, A. (2016). Be- yond Gender: Initial Findings from a Canadian Comparative Research Program on Equality in Labour Market Based Family Care Policies’, presentation given at the 13th annual seminar of the international network on leave policies and research, Madrid, 30th September 2016. (Available at http://www.leavenetwork. org/fileadmin/Leavenetwork/Seminars/2016/ S6.mckay.11oct.pdf).

Merla, L. and Deven, F. (2016) ‘Belgium country note’, in: Koslowski A., Blum S. and Moss P. (eds.) International Review of Leave Policies and Research 2016. (Available at: http://www. leavenetwork.org/lp_and_r_reports/).

Moss, P. and Deven, F. (eds.) (1999) Parental Leave: Progress or Pitfall? Research and Policy Issues in Europe. NIDI CBGS: Brussels.

Parijs, P. van (2004). A Basic Income for All: A Brief Defence. To secure real freedom, grant everyone a subsistence income. In L.F.M. Groot (Ed.), Ba- sic Income, Unemployment and Compensatory Justice. Dordrecht: Springer.

Ruhm, C. J. (2000) ‘Parental Leave and Child Health’, Journal of Health Economics, 19 (6), 931-960.