Upgrade: The proposal has been approved unanimously. All groups agree to discuss equal paternity and maternity leave, so the parliamentary process of the proposed law starts.With the arrival of Sánchez in the Government, the equalization of paternity and maternity leave is raised again. Pablo Iglesias, Secretary General of Unidos Podemos, will defend today in the plenary of the Congress of Deputies taking into consideration a proposal of the law that defends match paternity and maternity leave in 16 weeks by birth or adoption. It is expected that the vote will obtain majority support from the rest of the political parties, giving the green light to its parliamentary process.
The proposal is aimed at promoting co-responsibility in the care of children, encouraging parents to be involved in the care of babies to the same extent as mothers, and that women do not suffer discrimination within the labor market by becoming mothers .
How would it be implemented?
We can propose that both mother and father are entitled to the same period of non-transferable permission, without "any part thereof may be assigned or shared". In this way, the permit acquires an individual character and any possible transfer to the mother is avoided. The benefit will also be identical, remunerated at 100% of the regulatory base for the entire duration.
The permit would consist of two stages: the first of two weeks shared by both parents at birth Then a second named "parenting permit" of fourteen weeks that parents may enjoy non-simultaneous and non-transferable during the 12 months after birth, adoption or foster care.
This second part should be distributed, according to Podemos, in four weeks of full-time mandatory enjoyment, and ten remaining voluntary enjoyment with the possibility of part-time work.
For the mother it would not imply any extension with respect to the current maternity leave, which is also 16 weeks, but it would be for the father, who currently has four weeks of leave (five weeks after the approval of the General State Budget of 2018).
We can talk about a transitional period to gradually extend the parental permission until reaching ten weeks of voluntary enjoyment and as the father's permission is extended, the number of weeks that the biological mother may give to the father will be reduced.
Recall that Citizens also made a proposal a few days ago to raise paternity and maternity leave to 34 weeks, but with another distribution system so that the mother could reach a maximum of twenty weeks. The formula proposed by this party wants to reward parents who share the task equally, but does not make them non-transferable as we propose.
Universalization of the right to a place in nursery school
The proposal of the Podemos law also includes the "universalization of the right to a place in nursery school for the finalization of permits". It is intended that parents, regardless of their level of income, can access in a "affordable" way to a nursery with "sufficient hours", ensuring labor insertion.
It will come true? The processing of the law
If the processing of the proposal is approved today by the majority of political parties, the text will go to the corresponding commission where the process of amendments will begin and the other parliamentary groups may propose the changes they deem appropriate.
But to get it finally approved, it will have to complete its parliamentary process before the Courts are dissolved and the Government calls for new elections. Otherwise it would decay, and Podemos would have to push it back from scratch in the next legislature.
