Client: Ministry of Social Affairs
Period: 2024
In the study, we describe the patterns and background of parental benefit usage in families where the father has taken the parental benefit. The research is based on interviews with families where the father used the shared parental benefit starting from 2020 (in the spring of 2022, a new, more flexible parental benefit and leave system came into effect in Estonia).
The combination of parental leave, parental benefit and employment depends on the flexibility of the workplace, the needs of the family, and the preferences of the parents.
Families justified their choices regarding the sharing of parental benefit with economic considerations, the organization of work and family life, and the well-being of the child. Families share parental benefit differently and highlight various reasons and solutions for the distribution of the benefit.
The parental benefit system is important for families and is highly valued both for the replacement rate of the benefit and the length of the payment period. Recently added flexibility to the system helps families better reconcile work and family life compared to before. Families suggested further improvements to the system, which include linking the duration of the benefit to the availability of kindergarten spots, further increasing the flexibility of the system to allow both parents to work part-time while receiving half of the parental benefit.