18 weeks of leave granted to all parents after the birth of a baby? This is what is proposed by an inter-party alliance which revealed on Thursday that it will launch an initiative in this direction at the federal level in the spring of 2025. The objective: to replace current maternity and paternity leave, a system which “puts mothers under pressure and excludes fathers”, with a model where each parent would benefit from an individual, equal and non-transmissible period away from work.
In addition to the well-being of parents and children, the implementation of this project would benefit the economy, in particular by impacting the shortage of qualified labor which affects Switzerland, according to the initiators. Mothers, in particular, are concerned, because the stability that family leave would imply would motivate them to “return to work more quickly at higher occupancy rates”. According to the alliance, this leave would also benefit SMEs and rural regions, as it would allow fairer competition in terms of working conditions against large companies.
The initiators – among others representatives of the Center, the Vert.es, the Vert’libéraux and Travail.Suisse – believe that the investments that would be implied by the entry into force of this leave would be “refinanced already after 20 years by income taxes and more social contributions. And Kathrin Bertschy, national councilor (VL/BE) and co-president of alliance F, concludes: “A country that wants children and a qualified workforce must invest in reconciling work and family. It’s worth it.”
Already opponents on the right
Voices have already been raised on the right to decry the “family leave” initiative. For PLR national advisor Andri Silberschmidt, granting 18 weeks to both parents is “clearly exaggerated”. The elected official does not believe that this measure could benefit the economy. On the contrary, it would represent a big burden for SMEs. A point of view shared by UDC national advisor Rémy Wyssmann, who fears a flight of SMEs abroad.
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