Ak Calls for Improvement

Proportion of Fathers Taking Parental Leave Remains Low

(Bild: Yakobchuk Olena - stock.adobe.com)

According to the Chamber of Labor, child care in Upper Austria remains firmly in the hands of women. Only 13.7 percent of men take advantage of paternity leave. And of those, only five percent stay home for more than six months.

Despite rising participation by fathers, childcare in Upper Austria remains predominantly a woman’s responsibility. The 2026 Return-to-Work Monitoring Report does show an increase in the proportion of men taking parental leave, from 5.7 percent in 2006 to 13.3 percent in 2023. However, this also means that nearly nine out of ten women (86.7 percent) still bear the primary responsibility for unpaid care work and accept career interruptions as a result.

102 men stayed home longer
“The increasing involvement of fathers should not obscure the fact that childcare and parental leave—as well as the associated career disadvantages—continue to be borne predominantly by women,” said AK President Andreas Stangl. The unequal distribution is particularly evident when it comes to the duration of parental leave.

Just under two-thirds (63.7 percent) of men interrupt their employment for no more than three months, just under a quarter (23.7 percent) do not interrupt their employment at all, despite receiving child care allowance, and only 5.7 percent of fathers take more than six months of parental leave. In absolute terms, that amounts to 102 men.

Income also plays a role
There is also a correlation between income and participation in parental leave. While men with low incomes are particularly likely to take no break from work at all, men with higher incomes do take shorter periods of parental leave more often; however, longer breaks from work remain the exception even in this group.

Demands of the Chamber of Labor

• A fairer distribution of unpaid care work
• Equal pay for work of equal value
• More family-friendly work schedules and conditions
• Expansion of early childhood education and care programs 

The long-term consequences of this unequal distribution are severe: When they become parents, women are more likely to reduce their working hours, take longer breaks from the workforce, and thus face a significantly higher risk of income loss and poverty in old age.