parental leave

Parental leave is (generally) paid time off for new parents of any gender after giving birth. Most high and middle income countries require that women are offered a certain number of weeks of paid maternity leave after giving birth to bond with the baby, get into the rhythm of her new family configuration, and heal from labor and childbirth. About 50% of the countries in the world also require that some paternity leave is offered to new fathers as well. In some countries, parental leave is offered to new parents who can divide it between them. The USA is the only industrialized country that offers no paid parental leave.