Recent studies have shown that a longer paternity leave for fathers may result in positive outcomes for the family's health and relationship. Any move to make this happen is good news for every Filipino family.
A lawmaker wants to increase the fully paid paternity leave of every working father to 30 days so that he can effectively support his partner and newborn during childbirth.
Quezon City Rep. Marvin Rillo said in a press release on February 5, 2023 that under the House Bill No. 4430, the expanded benefit coverage will include every unmarried working father living together with the mother so long as the couple is both unmarried and free to wed.
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“We should not discriminate against the unmarried working father in the grant of paid paternity leave credits, so long as he is living in with the mother and the couple are free to marry or stay together,” Rillo said.
Rillo invoked the mandate of the 1987 Constitution for the State to reinforce family solidarity and foster the total development of every family, to push for the swift passage of his bill.
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Currently, the Paternity Leave Law of 1996 provides that “every married male employee in the private or public sectors shall be entitled to a paternity leave of seven days with full pay for the first four deliveries (childbirth or miscarriage) of the legitimate spouse with whom he is cohabiting.”
Rillo’s bill also seeks to remove the word “married” and change “his partner” to “the legitimate spouse” in the provision.
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The new bill seeks to upgrade the seven days to “30 working days” so that all working fathers regardless of their employment status may avail of this leave credit.
READ ALSO: Giving Dads a 30-Day Paternity Leave Means Better Postpartum Recovery for Mom
Under the Expanded Maternity Leave Law of 2019, a mother may also allocate up to seven days of her 105-day fully paid maternity leave credit to the child’s father, without discrimination as to his marital status with the newborn’s mother.
According to a 2020 study, taking a paternity leave can have a big impact in the health of a marriage or relationship. “Results suggest that increasing access to parental leave for fathers—and encouraging fathers to take this leave—may help to increase family stability,” said Richard Petts, the study’s lead author and a sociology professor at Ball State, in a press release. Read more about it here.
Read why new dads should be involved in childbirth, here.
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