Benefits of a maternity / parental leave in the EU-27: Literature review

Maternity / parental leave and the relevant benefits constitute important means through which welfare states provide support to families to contribute to social reproduction, to guarantee a good start in life for children, to protect children’s and mothers’ wellbeing and more recently to address current demographic and economic problems and help families achieve work / family balance, a declared EU priority. This note presents the important benefits and describes the crucial role maternity / parental leave plays on the societal and family level in the European Union.