From August 2022, parents are entitled to financial compensation during the first nine weeks of parental leave, writes Minister Wouter Koolmees of Social Affairs and Employment in a letter to parliament on Wednesday. The leave allowance includes half of the employee’s daily wages up to a maximum of 219.28 euros.
The nine weeks of parental leave should be taken in the first year of the child’s life. In total, parents can take six months’ leave until the eighth birthday of the child, of which 17 weeks remain unpaid.
Koolmees writes on Wednesday that the cabinet has been thinking for some time about “how we can help parents in combining work and family”. This is striking, because this measure was imposed on the Netherlands from the European Union (EU). Koolmees initially voted against the ‘work-private balance sheet directive’ because he thinks this is a matter for national governments and not for Europe.
Thanks to the EU directive, according to the cabinet, 200,000 working parents will soon be able to spend more time at home.
The scheme was announced in mid-2019, when the European Parliament agreed to a minimum of two months of paid parental leave. European politicians called financial aid “necessary” to better distribute family care responsibilities. Countries were allowed to determine the amount of the financial contribution themselves.
Break with traditional roles
Minister Ingrid van Engelshoven of Education, Culture and Science writes that she wants to break with the traditional division of roles, whereby fathers work full-time and mothers usually take care of the children. According to Van Engelshoven, paying part of the parental leave can free up more space to open that discussion.
In addition to parental leave, parents also have birth leave. Immediately after the birth of their child, they are given five working days off. As of 1 July, parents can take another five weeks of paid leave after the birth of their child. This must be done in the first six months after birth.
In addition, parental leave is in addition to the existing maternity leave, which mothers can use for sixteen to twenty weeks. Their partners are now entitled to a total of fifteen weeks of paid leave.
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