Report on Parental Leave System and Recommendations for its Development
Abstract
The report, commissioned by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, provides an overview of the current parenting leave system and assesses its functioning and development needs. Based on the available research evidence, the report examines the effects of parenting leaves on social and gender equality, employment, and the wellbeing of children and parents. As part of the report, the views of key stakeholders regarding the development of parenting leaves were also collected. In addition, the report presents alternative scenarios for reforming parenting leaves and evaluates their cost and employment effects.
The report was prepared by a working group comprising Research Manager Johanna Lammi-Taskula (Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare ), Professor Marika Jalovaara (University of Turku), Research Manager Anneli Miettinen (Social Insurance Institution), Collegium Researcher Satu Helske (University of Turku), University Researcher Jessica Nisén (University of Turku), Research Manager Johanna Närvi (Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare ), Senior Researcher Tapio Räsänen (Social Insurance Institution), and Professor Eva Österbacka (Åbo Akademi University).
The working group proposes the abolition of the home care allowance system and an extension of the current parental allowance period by allocating each parent an additional parental leave period of a few months, during which the allowance would be paid at a flat rate that is higher than the current home care allowance. Fathers’ leave use should also be promoted by increasing the replacement rate of the parental allowance. In addition, the working group proposes integrating the flexible and partial care allowances. The group considers it important to ensure the availability of high-quality
early childhood education and care services that can better respond to the needs of families.
Full text (in Finnish) (julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi).
Authors
Johanna Lammi-Taskula, Anneli Miettinen, Marika Jalovaara, Satu Helske, Jessica Nisén, Johanna Närvi, Tapio Räsänen, Eva Österbacka
Additional Information
- Peer-Reviewed: no.
- Open Access: yes.
- Cite as: Lammi-Taskula, J., Miettinen, A., Jalovaara, M., Helske, S., Nisén, J., Närvi, J., Räsänen, T., & Österbacka, E. (2026). Selvitys perhevapaajärjestelmän kehittämiseksi. Sosiaali- ja terveysministeriö. https://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-952-00-9860-5
