According to the Department of Labor, in 2005, about 60 percent of U.S. women age 16 and older were in the workforce, compared to 46 percent in 1975. Some U.S. employers offer alternative work arrangements to help workers manage both work and other life responsibilities. One type of alternative work arrangement allows workers to reduce their work hours from the traditional 40 hours per week, such as with part-time work or job sharing. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993 requires most employers to provide workers 12 weeks of unpaid leave from work for a variety of reasons, such as childbirth, caring for relatives with serious health conditions, or other personal reasons, such as their own serious health condition or the adoption of a child, and employers must guarantee workers a similar job upon return. Some arrangements adopted by employers, such as flextime, allow employees to begin and end their workday outside the traditional 9-to-5 work hours. Other arrangements, such as telecommuting from home, allow employees to work in an alternative location. Child care facilities are also available at some workplaces to help workers with their care giving responsibilities. In addition to benefiting workers, these arrangements may also benefit employers by helping them recruit and retain workers. The federal government also provides child care subsidies for certain low- income families, and tax breaks for most parents, both to support their ability to work and to balance work-family responsibilities. Under programs funded by the Child Care and Development Fund, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and state resources, states have the flexibility to serve certain types of low-income families. The Head Start program provides comprehensive early childhood education and development services to low-income preschool children, on a part- or full- day basis. Last, the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit allows parents to reduce their tax on their federal income tax return if they paid someone to care for a child under age 13 or a qualifying spouse or dependent so they could work or look for work. In addition, the federal government offers workforce development and training programs designed to assist low-wage/low-skilled workers in the United States. The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998 requires states and localities to bring together a number of federally funded employment and training services into a statewide network of one-stop career centers. Low-skilled workers and dislocated workers can choose the training they determine best for themselves, working in consultation with a case manager. Additionally, the federal government provides tax breaks and incentives for companies to hire low-income workers, public assistance recipients, and workers with disabilities. Most of the countries we studied are members of the European Union, which provides minimum standards or basic rights for individuals across member states. For example, the 1997 directive on equal treatment of part- time work mandates that people holding less than full-time jobs be given prorated pay and benefits without discrimination. EU directives are generally binding in terms of the results to be achieved, but an opt-out option occasionally allows member states to delay action. Additionally, in 2000, member states have agreed to increase the number of women in employment, the number of adults in lifelong learning, and the provision of child care by the end of the decade. The EU offers financial support to its member states to help them succeed in employment goals. Other differences are relevant to consideration of the workforce attachment policies of our study countries. Although U.S. women have high levels of educational attainment, their workforce participation, in general, is lower than that of the countries we studied. While a higher education level is associated with greater likelihood of labor force participation, labor force participation for U.S. women is lower than that in any of our study countries except Ireland and New Zealand (see table 1). However, working women in the United States are more likely to work full-time than those in all other study countries except Sweden or Denmark. In the Netherlands, a country where 36 percent of all employment is part-time, women constitute more than three-quarters of employees working less than 30 hours per week. Differences in taxation across countries reflect economic and social priorities. The ratio of total tax revenues to gross domestic product (GDP) is a commonly used measure of state involvement in national economies. Countries with high tax-to-GDP ratios generally pay more from the public budget for services that citizens would have to pay for themselves—or do without—in lower-taxed countries. In 2004, Sweden had the highest tax revenue as a percentage of GDP among our study countries, at 50.4 percent. Denmark came next at 48.8 percent, followed by France at 43.4 percent. The United States had the lowest tax revenue as a percentage of GDP in 2004, at 25.5 percent. (See table 2.) Governments and employers in the countries we studied developed a variety of laws, government policies, and formal and informal practices, including periods of paid leave (such as maternity, paternity, or parental leave), flexible work schedules, child care, and training that may help women and low-wage/low-skilled workers enter and remain in the labor force. In addition to family leave for parents, countries provide other types of leave, and have established workplace flexibility arrangements for workers. All of the countries also subsidize child care for some working parents through a variety of means, such as direct benefits to parents for child care and tax credits. Last, governments and employers have a range of training and apprenticeship programs to help unemployed people find jobs and to help those already in the workforce advance in their careers. Many countries have developed and funded parental leave policies to assist employees in combining their work and family lives, recognizing, in part, the need to promote women’s participation in the labor force. A 1996 directive of the European Council requires all countries in the EU— including each of the European countries we reviewed—to introduce legislation on parental leave that would provide all working parents the right at least 3 months of leave—preferably paid—to care for a new baby. In the United States, the FMLA allows approximately 3 months of unpaid leave. Some of the countries we studied are social welfare states, and generally fund family leave payments through tax revenues and general revenues. For example, Canada, the UK, and the Netherlands fund paid leave policies in part through national insurance programs, which use payroll taxes paid by employers and employees. Denmark’s paid maternity, paternity, and parental leaves are financed by income tax revenues through an 8 percent tax on all earned income. Many national leave policies in our study countries require employees to work for a period of time before they can take leave, giving employers assurances that employees are committed to their jobs. For example, in Denmark, employed women with a work history of at least 120 hours in the 13 weeks prior to the leave are allowed 18 weeks of paid maternity leave. In some countries, though, all parents are entitled to take family leave. In Sweden, all parents are entitled to parental benefits whether or not they are working. In the UK, by law, all expectant employees can take up to 52 weeks of maternity leave, regardless of how long they have worked for their employer. To enhance workers’ ability to take leave, the countries we studied replace all or part of the wages they forgo while on leave. Dutch employees on maternity leave and their partners are entitled to receive 100 percent of their wages, up to a maximum. In the UK, women who meet qualifying conditions of length of service and who earn a minimum amount for the national insurance system can receive up to 90 percent of their earnings. In Ireland, women can generally be paid at 80 percent of earnings, subject to their contributions into the social insurance system. However, employers may offer more leave than legally required. Leave is often intended to help parents care not just for newborns. In the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, and the UK, parents have the option of using their leave flexibly by dividing it into discrete parts, sometimes with the consent of an employer. In the Netherlands, for example, parents may divide the leave into a maximum of three parts and can take the leave simultaneously or following one another. The Netherlands, Sweden, and Denmark allow parents the use of parental leave until their child turns either 8 or 9, while the UK allows the use of parental leave until a child turns 5. Further, some countries allow workers to take leave to care for other family members. In Canada, all employees are eligible to take 8 weeks of unpaid leave to provide care and support to a seriously ill family member or someone considered as a family member. In other countries, the leave is more limited. New Zealand requires that all employers provide a minimum of 5 days of paid sick leave for an eligible employee’s own illness or to care for family members. A few countries have also developed national policies that promote flexible work opportunities, apart from leave. Dutch law gives eligible employees the right to reduce or increase working hours for any reason. Employers can deny the request only if the change would result in a serious obstacle, such as not having enough other workers to cover the hours an employee wishes to reduce. Similarly, British law allows workers to request changes to the hours or location of their work, to accommodate the care of children and certain adults. According to government officials from the UK Departments of Trade and Industry, and Communities and Local Government, this law provides the government with a cost-effective means to help women return to work. Although similar to the law in the Netherlands, this law gives employers in the UK more leeway to refuse an employee’s request. Flexible working opportunities for employees are often adjusted or developed by individual employers. Many employers extended the Right to Request provisions to all employees, for example. In other cases, employers have developed new opportunities.