Original Image Source: Laura Garcia- Pexels
One of the things that makes a married life meaningful is for their love to create a new life but the process that took place before and after that life comes into fruition comes with a lot of difficulty for both couples, specially to the wife since she would need to carry the child in her belly for around 9 months that could take a toll on her both physically, mentally and emotionally. This is why companies give the benefit of a maternity leave to a female employee that was expecting to have a child for her to recover and take care of the baby. On the other hand, a father can also apply for a paternity leave in which they could also take a break for work so that they can take care of their wife and the newborn child although this usually comes for a shorter duration compared to a maternity leave. That said, I believe it is important for both parents to be present when their newborn comes to life and shares their time with the baby.
Few months ago, I wrote about the Employment Perks That I Enjoyed as an Employee which discusses the benefits I received from the company I worked with but there were some other benefits I have not included in the post simply because I am not eligible for them such as having maternity leave that only applies for female employees that was going through pregnancy for a duration of 105 days which is paid and can be extended to another 30 days without pay while male employees that was expected to have a newborn can apply for a 7 day paternity leave which was also paid and can be extended, provided that there is a good reason. I can't say whether the time that was given on both leave are sufficient enough or not given that I have yet to come on such situation but what I could say is that both needs to have a break from work.
It was quite obvious why a mother needs a break from work as she needs time to recover from childbirth and takes care of the child and for the same reason, we can say that the father should also have a break to be by their side so he can provide support for their needs as the mother was in no capacity to move around while recovering whether it was for buying food or other necessities and perhaps, even be the one responsible on making their meals particularly when they have no other relatives around. Even the task of doing household chores will lie on to the father which should also be done as sanitary as possible since a newborn baby got a very weak immune system. I also think that it is an important experience both as a father and a husband to have a break to share this period with their wife and their newborn child as to further strengthens family bond, helping with the childcare of the newborn and providing emotional support to the wife.
On the company perspective, I think it is also more beneficial to provide paternity leave since it will be difficult to an employee to work efficiently while taking care of other people along with the anxiety that will induce to them knowing that they are from the two important people in their life when they are most vulnerable. On the other hand, providing paternity leave can help to keep their employees to work efficiently and perhaps better as this also promotes employee loyalty to the company.
Having a paternity leave does not necessarily mean that fathers have a free time to rest. It means that fathers will have more time to do both their marital and parental duties along with their wife. It means that the father was within his family during one of their weakest times, making sure that they are safe and receive the care that they need. It was a break that was taken not out of the desire to take a rest but to have time for the family. Thankfully, the labor code of my country states that the initial duration of both paternity and maternity leave are paid so the issue of money have been alleviated to some extent since it is something that I might need in the future.
Thank you for reading my post and see you on the next one!
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