Starting soon, male employees will be able to take parental leave beginning 50 days before their spouse's expected delivery date. A new policy will also allow up to five days of leave for spouses who experience miscarriage or stillbirth, and paternity leave will be permitted for men to care for their partners during high-risk pregnancies.
The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced on September 17 that the 'Spousal Support Package' aimed at encouraging male participation in caregiving from pregnancy through childbirth will take effect on September 18.
Previously, support for male employees related to pregnancy and childbirth was primarily focused on the post-delivery period. This expansion of support addresses the lack of institutional measures for dealing with risks during pregnancy, including miscarriage and stillbirth.
The newly introduced leave for miscarriage and stillbirth allows for a maximum of five days, with the first three days being paid. Employees must request and begin their leave within 20 days of the date of the miscarriage or stillbirth. The end date of the leave can extend beyond the 20-day limit.
The number of leave days applies regardless of the duration of the spouse's pregnancy. Employees can request between one to five days, and non-working holidays do not count against the leave days. This policy applies to both legally married and common-law spouses.
Employees can generally take their requested leave days consecutively, but they may split the leave if permitted by their employer. Even if a miscarriage or stillbirth occurs before the effective date, employees can still apply for leave within the designated timeframe.
The spousal birth leave period has also been expanded. Previously, it could only be taken within 120 days after childbirth, but now it can be taken from 50 days before the expected delivery date up to 120 days after the actual birth. The leave consists of 20 paid days and can be taken in three separate instances. There is no requirement to include the expected delivery date within the leave period, allowing for all days to be taken before or after the birth.
Male employees can also take paternity leave before the birth if their pregnant spouse is diagnosed with a condition that poses a risk of miscarriage or preterm birth, as defined in the relevant regulations. Applications must be submitted at least seven days before the intended start date of the leave.
The duration of this leave will be deducted from the existing parental leave period but will not count against the number of times leave can be split. This policy is not universally applicable to all pregnancies and must meet specific criteria related to defined risk conditions.
Recently, there has been an increasing trend in the utilization of support systems related to spousal childbirth among men. From January to August this year, approximately 269,000 individuals received benefits from maternal protection and work-family balance support programs, marking a 16.7% increase compared to the same period last year. The number of individuals receiving benefits from spousal birth leave rose by 45.1% to about 22,000.
Cho Jeong-sook, Director of Employment Support Policy at the Ministry of Labor, stated, "The participation of men in caregiving throughout the entire process from pregnancy to childbirth will be significantly broadened. We will continue to develop measures to reduce the burden of balancing work and childcare for working parents, including those in small businesses and non-standard employment."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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