Taking care of young kids - Politicians must acknowledge and support fathers' involvement in childcare.
From an expert's perspective, there's a high potential for increased father involvement in childcare. Jutta Allmendinger, the president of Berlin Social Science Center (WZB), shared this view with the German Press Agency. Her words, "In all our surveys, fathers say they want to spend more time with their kids," reflect this belief. However, there's a caveat. "All mothers say they want more time for work," she added, highlighting a perceived shift in societal attitudes.
She emphasized that the traditional roles assigned to mothers and fathers in childcare are largely driven by politics. While we urge dads to take parental leave too, Allmendinger points out that the existing systems often work against this idea.
One such system is the "costly spouse splitting," which indirectly encourages mothers to stay at home with their newborns longer and return to work part-time later. According to her, the coalition agreement, which includes provisions for family start-up time and more father months, could help drive this positive change. Moreover, there seems to be a possible shift away from the current setup.
When we look at the statistics, we find that in 2022, only 1.9% of fathers with their youngest child under 6 years old were on parental leave. In contrast, around 24% of mothers were on parental leave. The Federal Family Ministry reveals that on average, women currently spend 44.3% more time daily on unpaid care work than men.
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Jutta Allmendinger, a renowned expert and the president of Berlin Social Science Center (WZB), advocates for increased father involvement in childcare. Parents, particularly fathers, express a desire to spend more time with their children, according to Allmendinger's research with the German Press Agency. However, traditional societal attitudes and existing systems, including costly spouse splitting, often hinder this goal. Allmendinger suggests that changes in policies, such as the coalition agreement's provisions for family start-up time and more father months, could encourage fathers to take on more childcare responsibilities. In 2022, only 1.9% of fathers with young children were on parental leave, while around 24% of mothers were. The Federal Family Ministry reports that women currently spend more time daily on unpaid care work than men. Allmendinger's expert view emphasizes the need for politicians to support and acknowledge fathers' involvement in childcare and family life in Germany.
