I’m about to start my 12 week paternity leave next week thanks to a state program and almost everyone that I’ve told has had their jaws on the floor that I would even want to do that.
Today I witnessed a group of coworkers almost bragging how little time they took after their kids were born. I’ve heard stuff like “Most men are hard working and want to support their families so they don’t take leave”.
To me it was a no brainer, I’m getting ~85% of my normal pay and I get to take care of my wife, our son and our newborn for 3 whole months. and for someone who hasn’t taken a day breathe in the past 3 years I think I deserve it.
I’m in the US so I know it’s a “strange” concept, but people have seemed genuinely upset, people it doesn’t affect at all. Again, it’s a state program available to almost anyone who’s worked in the past 2 years, I’ve talked to soon to be dads who scoffed at the idea and were happy to use a week of pto and that’s it.
I feel like I’m missing something.
There is no level of productivity boost that can make up for months of actual absence lol
Paternity leave helps employers attract talent; in all other ways it does not help them at all.
You are absent for half a year. After that you are 20% more productive. After three years the employer will have made a profit on that time investment.
Or you go back to work straight away, you are constantly tired, you are constantly stressed. You make mistakes causing delays and damages in the hundreds of thousands, that you would not make otherwise…