European Parliament study on maternity, paternity & parental leave
On 26 February the European Parliament’s Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) committee discussed the Maternity Leave Directive on the basis of a new study by the European Parliament’s Policy Department, ‘Maternity, paternity and parental leave: Data related to duration and compensation rates in the EU’.
Member of FEMM expressed disappointment that the Latvian EU Presidency did not attend the meeting and announced that they will address the Latvian Minister about their absence. FEMM is also concerned that the European Commission has decided to withdraw the proposal for a Maternity Leave Directive if no progress is made in the coming months. The Directive’s chief negotiator in the Parliament, Maria Arena MEP (S&D, BE) said that the Council is turning its back on women’s protection meaning that women have to choose between having a job or a family, leading to demographic deficiencies.
Paraskevi Michou, Director of Civil Justice in the Commission’s Directorate-General for Justice, admitted that because the co-legislator has not yet found a compromise on the Directive, adoption has become less and less likely. The idea of proposing a withdrawal is to get the impetus to bring the proposal back to life. The Commission stands behind the Parliament and appreciates its efforts; now it is up to the Presidency to find an alternative way forward. If the proposal will be withdrawn we will have to find other ways to tackle the gender pay gap and take care of parents in the labour market.
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