Ministerial c'ttee approves 8-day paternity leave

The ministerial committee for legislative affairs today decided to support a bill for eight days paternity leave. The bill by Minister of Housing and Construction Uri Ariel (Habayit Hayehudi) and MK Tamar Zandberg (Meretz) grants paternity leave at the same time as maternity leave, immediately following the birth of a child. The paternity leave will comprise three paid vacation days and five days of sick leave paid by the employer.

Ariel submitted the bill in the previous Knesset, and it was passed in the preliminary reading, but did not move to the next stage when the Knesset was dissolved. In the new Knesset, Zandberg submitted the bill in coordination with Ariel, under an agreement between the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of the Economy. Coalition and opposition MKs support the bill.

The bill's preamble states that numerous studies show a clear link between fathers' involvement in the care and education of their children and paternity leave. "Israel does not grant paternity leave, even though Israel is the country with the highest birthrate in the West, which makes every day off of great value for the family. Throughout the West, there has been progress towards parental equality and this bill will anchor in law couples' shared time at the birth of a boy or a girl," states the preamble.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 27, 2013