Paternity leave - any sign of further changes

[corac2]

Hi all
I know the government made some changes to maternity leave in 2008. Just wondered whether there is any talk/sign of further policy change to make life easier for fathers? 6 days infant care seems very low indeed.

[anneteoh]

Hi all
I know the government made some changes to maternity leave in 2008. Just wondered whether there is any talk/sign of further policy change to make life easier for fathers? 6 days infant care seems very low indeed.

Indeed. In Sweden, they have a full year paternity leave with decreasing pay but only by up to a 25% or 50% reduction. Moreover, fathers can defer and accumulate their paternity leave, for life, if they return to work sooner.
Now, isn't that most civilised?
You should communicate to the Singapore ministry in charge of Post natal Parental Leave ; or your company if you work privately.
However, I found that communicating with the ministries are amazingly helpful. They are prepared to listen and make changes.
Good luck, and congratulations.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Nope. No changes on the horizon. The increase from 2 to 6 days has only been in effect for I believe 2.4 years. The government here is not that enlightened yet. Only lip service. That's way there is still no employee protection for those earning more than 2K or legal recourse for minority job discrimination. Only "best practices" but no laws with teeth. That's why nothing really changes here. However, on the "mother" side they did increase it an additional month so at least it's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.

Anna, I'd be curious to know what is Sweden's income tax structure like, comparatively speaking.

[anneteoh]

Nope. No changes on the horizon. The increase from 2 to 6 days has only been in effect for I believe 2.4 years. The government here is not that enlightened yet. Only lip service. That's way there is still no employee protection for those earning more than 2K or legal recourse for minority job discrimination. Only "best practices" but no laws with teeth. That's why nothing really changes here. However, on the "mother" side they did increase it an additional month so at least it's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.

Anna, I'd be curious to know what is Sweden's income tax structure like, comparatively speaking.

It's ANNE, SMS, I'm not Anna and the King of Siam.
From what I've heard, it's about 45 % monthly tax for a salary of about 30,000 grand. They also have fantastic maternal pay out - about 400 pounds monthly for a year, regardless of her employment history. If the mother had worked before, she would have accrued a higher sum of monthly maternity payment for a year. Child benefit payments are about 60 pounds per child per month, but the third child gets more ( to encourage higher birth rates)
The other thing is, SMS, I do think the government will listen. Singapore is doing well economically, and they have a really smart team in PAP. When I was there, civil servant 1A1, I used to raise issues about the Saturday work for teachers . I helped them argue for a 'Balanced lifestyle," as the catchphrase was then. And indeed, the MOE made changes the following year - it changed to Saturday mornings only, and that is optional.
They love ideas and thinking out of the box. You could raise a platform on Developed countries and Family Incentives. I mean, fathers can work at home during paternity leave.
I know the MOE subsidize every school child every year - money which is paid into the pupil's account for their school needs and school trips etc. But I'm not aware if they have child benefits or payments for maternity leave ,and if so, to what length of time.

[corac2]

Thanks both... My husband and I are negotiating a move to Singapore but really would like for him to have at least UK-length paternity leave. (He'd be working at a UK company based in Singapore). It would make Singapore an even more attractive place to move to if the government could catch up with world trends!

[sundaymorningstaple]

So, while the paternity packages along with all the other social welfare systems in place in Sweden, it come with a 45% tax rate that penalizes everybody, with or without children, married or single or widowed or divorced. While on the same income here the taxes are negligible with an average of around 14%. Given that, I believe the general population would probably much rather the lower tax rates which are all the time and not just something that happens only 1.23 times in a marriage here in Singapore.

I do agree, however, that it would definitely, be nice, but at 62+ I don't think I want to pay for it with my tax bill every year.

On the other hand, if there were paternity leave, it might just increase the fertility rate here a little bit. But I kind of doubt it as the current population is stuck on the mememe thing.

[anneteoh]

Thanks both... My husband and I are negotiating a move to Singapore but really would like for him to have at least UK-length paternity leave. (He'd be working at a UK company based in Singapore). It would make Singapore an even more attractive place to move to if the government could catch up with world trends!

My pleasure. If you're working for a UK company, you coud negotaite for a UK paternity package which is a month long? As far as the Singgovt's not paying, I don't think they'd be bothered about any other kinds of leave, including French leave. No doubt SMS can shed more light on this.
When I was there in 2008, Singapore, in many areas, was above world trends - just in it being such a convenient place for living. You have the best hospitals in the world, the best food choices, comforts etc.

There're some things that might irk you at first - the heat ( if you're used to UK weather ), the high rises, the level of noise (air condition, fans etc) but when you get used to them, I don't think there's anywhere else I'd like to retire in.

[anneteoh]

So, while the paternity packages along with all the other social welfare systems in place in Sweden, it come with a 45% tax rate that penalizes everybody, with or without children, married or single or widowed or divorced. While on the same income here the taxes are negligible with an average of around 14%. Given that, I believe the general population would probably much rather the lower tax rates which are all the time and not just something that happens only 1.23 times in a marriage here in Singapore.

I do agree, however, that it would definitely, be nice, but at 62+ I don't think I want to pay for it with my tax bill every year.

On the other hand, if there were paternity leave, it might just increase the fertility rate here a little bit. But I kind of doubt it as the current population is stuck on the mememe thing.

When I was working in Singapore,1999 - 2002, my tax was 1%, I believe.
Nice pay but boring life it would be to be stuck in the South of Sweden, like my daughter was, and being typically English, too inhibited to use the language especially when Swedes speak such good English too.
I do believe the world is overpopulated. There just seems to be too many people everywhere. I mean, look at HK and its vertical rush. I prefer to be in touch with the ground rather than spending half my life suspended in space. Or, all one's life if you're born on the 15 floor, work on the 20th floor and visit your friends and relatives all above ground. School might be one exception that 's rooted to the earth. Apart from hk, Singapore looks pretty crowded; London's so crowded, as are most British towns, France too, seems to be more crowded and so is Sweden in some places where the immigrant population are. Frankly speaking, some cultures are socially engineered for reproduction.
It's that kind of youth culture everywhere - very Western, most of us say. I did notice how my colleagues in Singapore retain their traditional Confucian virtues - they get maids to look after their aging parents, take them on holidays and are most respectful not just in everyday matters, but in the respect they have for their parents' views on decision making and other issues. That, to me, is civilised family culture.