The research on paid parental leave is robust—having at least 12 weeks of paid leave is beneficial for parent employees, their families, and employers. Mothers who don’t have access to leave face financial strain and are more likely to leave the workforce (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023). This negatively affects their career trajectories and lifetime earnings. Additionally, infants miss out on crucial bonding time and early developmental support, potentially impacting their health and well-being (Pew Research Center, 2023). Studies have found evidence of positive outcomes for dads taking parental leave, including increased involvement in childcare (Pleck, 2010), stronger bonds with children (Lamb, 2010), and improved maternal health (Chatterji & Markowitz, 2008).
The entire family system is impacted by parental leave policies, and those impacts extend to employers. The return on investment of every dollar invested in paid leave policies is estimated to have a return of $2.57, according to the National Partnership for Women and Families. Take Google for example, which found that extending their paid leave from 12 to 18 weeks eliminated gender differences in employee attrition rates. Before the shift, women were leaving their jobs at twice the rate of men. Google’s senior VP of people operations, Laszlo Bock, commented:
“The attrition rate for women after childbirth was twice our average attrition rate . . . After making the change in leave, the difference in attrition........