Working Papers
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Marinova, Dani M. & de Carvalho, Gabriela. “De-penalizing motherhood? Paternity leave’s (un)intended effects on job discrimination.”
Abstract
Job discrimination associated with motherhood has been documented across advanced capitalist economies, but we know little about the effectiveness of father-specific leave intended to redress it. Paternity leave seeks to increase and normalize men’s involvement in caregiving, challenge traditional gender norms that associate childcare primarily with mothers and reduce employer biases that penalize women for assumed caregiving responsibilities. We test this expectation for the first time by leveraging original survey data on reported discrimination by parents with children born before and after Spain’s 2021 paternity leave reform, which extended paternity leave and equalized it with maternity leave. Spain provides a compelling case to assess paternity leave’s impact, with over 80% of eligible fathers now taking paternity leave, alongside well-documented discrimination against mothers and no penalties for fathers. Results show that the reform did not reduce discrimination against mothers, who report stable rates of job discrimination before and after its implementation. Fathers, however, report significantly higher levels of job discrimination after the reform—especially in relation to hiring, termination, and workplace culture—suggesting that equal leave entitlements trigger new forms of bias against men as caregivers.González Motos, Sheila & Marinova, Dani M. “Equal Leave, Equal Care? Evidence from the 2021 Paternity Leave Reform in Spain.”