From: stefano@ecf.toronto.edu (Bruno Di Stefano)
Subject: Re: Maternity leaves in civilized countries
Organization: University of Toronto, Engineering Computing Facility
Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1992 06:52:56 GMT

In article <1992Oct3.221225.29128@morrow.stanford.edu> BL.JYC@forsythe.stanford.edu (Jon Corelis) writes:
>   Here are some selected examples of legally mandated maternity leaves
>in various industrially advanced countries.  Except where noted they
> ..............        ......I don't know how this maximum covered wage
>compares to the average wage in the various countries; perhaps some
>other netters can tell us.  These figures were published in 1983, but I
>believe the situation in most countries hasn't changed drastically since
>then.
>
>
>   Country                   Leave                  Salary paid on leave
>
>   ........                ..............            ..............
>   Italy                  2 months pregnancy           80%
>                          3 months newborn
>
>
At the best of my knowledge, the first figure (paid absence during
pregnancy) may go up to 6 months if requested by a physician, on the
ground that the pregnancy is a difficult one. The Government pays the
salary, not the employer.

At the best of my knowledge, the second figure is 6 months.

Almost 50% of the Italian employers provide 1 year paid leave, that can
be used before or after birth, depending on the mother's preference.

Salary paid on leave is 80% of the real salary. Many employers pay
100% (I don't know what percentage).

Daycare from age 3 months to age 3 years is totally free for those in need
and is very affordable for most people. After age 3 years, kindergarten is
totally free.

Because of these benefits, Italian women don't, normally, quit jobs
after becoming mothers, and are not very penalized in their careers
in comparison to men. Typically, Italian women move along their careers
like men of the same age and education. The glass ceiling seems to exist
from vicepresident up. For the generations born during and after WWII 
women account already for a little more than 50% of lawyers, physicians, 
architects, and about 30% of mathematicians, physicists, and engineers.

In spite of the above benefits, the birth rate is rather low and is
at less than 2 children per family, tending toward 1 child per family.
Women tend to be absent from the job no more than men. 

This state of affairs has started in the mid 50s. The matter is not
resented nor discussed in Italian society and employers have never
tried to get it changed in the last 30 years. This is probably possible,
because also Italian men don't give all of themselves to the company:
almost nobody would work extra hours without being paid overtime
(and employers don't expect it) or would work late or weekends. It is
extremely unusual that somebody would postpone his/her vacation because
of corporate needs. Only self employed people (who usually earn more)
or people who own a significant amount (i.e: at least 10%) of shares 
of a company tend to work long hours. 

Additionally, there is a tendency to organize work in such a way that
most people can be substituted very quickly. All sort of rules exist
that may cause prolonged government paid absences of men (i.e: cases of 
late army conscription; army recalls, possible up to age 45-50; etc). 
In this framework, a pregnacy leave is not very different from many 
possible leaves that may affect also male employees.
-- 
Bruno Di Stefano
stefano@ecf.toronto.edu		(course related matters)
bruno@ecf.toronto.edu		(professional matters)
Newsgroups: misc.jobs.misc