“CLOSING THE GENDER GAP IN PARENTAL LEAVE: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PARENTAL LEAVE IN INDIA AND WESTERN COUNTRIES”

AUTHOR – HARINI.M STUDENT AT SCHOOL OF EXCELLENCE IN LAW THE TAMILNADU DR AMBEDKAR LAW UNIVERSIY, CHENNAI

BEST CITATION – HARINI.M, “CLOSING THE GENDER GAP IN PARENTAL LEAVE: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PARENTAL LEAVE IN INDIA AND WESTERN COUNTRIES”, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (5) OF 2026, PG. 451-463, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.

ABSTRACT

This research paper delves into comparative analysis of parental leave in India and other western countries to suggest how gender gap can be minimised and closed for recognising caregiving role of both the parents.There are several countries that adopted parental leave law for the well being of the newborn in this contemporary world. Parental leave under labour law has evolved from a mere ‘maternity benefit’ measure into a broader gender neutral policy in advanced economies but in India ,however ,statutory protection remains largely maternity-centric, with limited statutory recognition of paternity or shared parental leave.This research paper deploys, the use of doctrinal and comparative legal method to analyse the parental leave regimes in India, Sweden, Germany ,and the US to draw lessons on duration ,remuneration, job protection, gender neutral design ,coverage of informal sector and private sector .It mainly points out that though India’s maternity leave provisions are relatively generous in duration ,they remain maternity centric and fail to institutionalise shared parental responsibility. By drawing lessons from other western countries ,the study proposes that India should move towards shared parental leave scheme.For the purpose of this study, this paper will examine statutes ,codes, reports and judgements pertaining to maternity and paternity benefit across various countries.

Keywords: Maternity benefits, Paternity benefits, shared parental leave, gender neutral design ,informal sector .