Why the U.S. Should Have (and Why Men Should Take) Paternity Leave

A briefing paper prepared for the Council on Contemporary Families by Richard J. Petts, Professor, Department of Sociology, Ball State University, together with Sarah Schoppe-Sullivan and Reed Donithen, Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University

February 25, 2025

Amidst all the talk of increased political polarization and divisiveness within the United States, it can be easy to lose sight of the ways in which Americans are united. Yet, U.S. adults overwhelmingly believe that spending time with family is very important, with 89% of democrats and 92% of republicans supporting this belief. Americans also appear to be reaching consensus on one key policy that can promote family time: paid parental leave. The vast majority of Americans favor paid parental leave policies, even across political lines and within contentious “battleground” states. This support corresponds to growth in access to paid family leave policies. In the past 5 years, five states have adopted paid family and medical leave policies – bringing the U.S. total to 13 states (plus Washington, DC) with these policies in place. Although this progress pales in comparison to the more robust paid parental leave policies in European and other countries, it demonstrates the growing awareness of the need for paid leave policies for families.

Scholars and policymakers have learned a lot about what makes a good parental leave policy. In particular, paid parental leave policies should provide an adequate period of time off work (at least 18 weeks), should be well-paid, should provide job protection, and should be available to fathers. In many ways, U.S. state paid family leave policies are “good” policies as they are often well-paid (particularly for low-income workers), provide job protection, and are equally available to mothers and fathers (although they do not adhere to International Labour Organization guidelines recommending 18 weeks of leave).

However, the reliance on state- and company-level policies in the U.S. (as opposed to federal policies) results in just over ¼ of American workers having access to paid parental leave. Furthermore, while Americans are generally supportive of paid parental leave policies, there are clear concerns that taking parental leave is harmful for one’s career even if one’s job is protected. Whereas taking leave is seen as necessary for mothers to recover physically and emotionally from childbirth, some remain skeptical about paternity leave – viewing this leave as unnecessary and believing that fathers instead should focus on work.

The view that parental leave should primarily be used by mothers and that fathers instead should prioritize work fuels gender inequality in both paid work and home life. As fatherhood scholars, we have engaged in extensive research demonstrating the general benefits of father involvement in childcare and domestic work, as well as the specific benefits of paternity leave for families.

Paternity Leave Promotes Father Involvement

Fathers cite lack of time as a primary barrier preventing them from being as involved in their children’s lives as they desire. The first benefit of paternity leave is providing fathers with dedicated time to bond with their new child and to learn how to care for their child, which sets them up to be more involved with their children in the long term. Indeed, U.S. fathers who take longer paternity leave remain more involved fathers throughout the first few years of their child’s life. In addition, when fathers take at least two weeks of paternity leave, children later report that their fathers are more involved in their lives, they feel closer to their fathers, and they communicate better with their fathers compared to children whose fathers did not take leave. In short, paternity leave sets the stage for fathers to be highly involved throughout their child’s life, which benefits children, families, and fathers themselves.

Paternity Leave Promotes Stronger Relationships between Parents

In addition to providing time for fathers to bond with their child and gain parenting confidence, paternity leave also provides dedicated time for parents to figure out how to parent together. This increases the likelihood that parents can support one another and reduces the likelihood that one parent (often the mother) becomes the ‘parenting expert’ and shoulders the burden of parenting. In fact, a new study shows that mothers are less likely to discourage fathers from participating in childcare when fathers take longer paternity leave, which allows fathers to more effectively act as  parents on their own terms. Other studies further show that paternity leave-taking can help to strengthen parental relationships. For example, mothers report higher relationship satisfaction and greater parenting support from fathers for years following the birth of a child when fathers take longer paternity leave.  Paternity leave is even linked to a lower likelihood of divorce.

How Can We Promote Greater Access To, and Use of, Paternity Leave?

The evidence is clear that paternity leave is good for families, and it has the potential to benefit American society by promoting more egalitarian parenting arrangements and greater gender equality in the paid labor force. But to fully realize these benefits, access to paid paternity leave needs to increase. Recent policy developments in Europe show that when paid parental leave policies are expanded and targeted toward fathers, fathers are much more likely to use these policies. However, policy reform alone is not enough to change deep-seated cultural beliefs about gender, work, and family. We also need to become more accepting and supportive of men taking longer periods of leave, as fathers are more likely to use the parental leave they are entitled to if they believe their workplaces are supportive and do not fear negative consequences as a result of leave-taking. Public support for paid parental leave is building, and the benefits for all workers – including fathers – to have access to, and take, paid parental leave is clear. Evidence suggests the time is now! In fact, one recent national survey found that U.S. adults believe employed fathers should receive 10.5 weeks of paid parental leave (and mothers should receive 16 weeks) – over twice as much as was reported in 2017. It is time for policies and workplace culture to catch up to the cultural wave of support for paid parental leave in the U.S.

Acknowledgment

The authors would like to thank the staff at CCF for their assistance with the production of this article and Stephanie Coontz for her helpful comments in drafting this brief.

For More Information, Please Contact:

Richard J. Petts
Associate Dean of the College of Sciences and Humanities and Professor, Department of Sociology
Ball State University
rjpetts@bsu.edu