Currently, parents take family leave unevenly. This is especially detrimental to the position of women in the job market and their income, which has both short- and long-term effects. The aim of the family leave reform is a more even distribution of child-rearing responsibilities between the parents of a family. This is done to improve equality between women and men, both in the family and in working life. Furthermore, improvement is sought in the welfare of children and families, and in the gap between women’s and men’s pay and pensions.
The new parental allowance and leave system seeks to promote a more equal model of parenthood and that both parents have an equal right to the use of the allowance and leave. Furthermore, current parental allowance legislation is outdated and has become very complex due to a number of partial legislative amendments. The reform seeks to clarify the regulations, include different types of families, and consider the varying needs of families.
The EU Work-Life Balance Directive, which Finland has committed to, also requires certain changes in the regulations concerning parental allowance and family leave.