Extended parental leave is expected to be introduced as soon as 2018 but is it the right one for most Canadian families?
As part of the federal government’s new budget, new parents will be given the option to take up to 18 months in parental leave but taking advantage of it will come at a cost.
Vanessa McCubbing, a Saskatoon mom, reviewed the new parental leave benefits and says she sees the appeal – like most moms she wishes she could have a little more time with her youngest son before returning to work.
“It does go quickly, I know some days they do seem long but it does go really quick,” McCubbing said.
READ MORE: Canada’s new 18-month parental leave offers flexibility — but comes with a catch
As any parent will tell you though, babies aren’t cheap and this couldn’t be more true for the McCubbings.
Not only has the couple had to endure the regular expenses associated with an infant from diapers to a nursery, they required fertility treatments to aid them in their journey towards parenthood with both of their sons.
At this point, the biggest barrier for McCubbing’s family as well as other Canadians is they don’t have the money to afford them more time to spend with their little ones, even when they’re receiving employment insurance (EI) benefits.
“Perfect situation, people would save for a year a so before they start a family,” McCubbing said.
“But that’s not really the reality, a lot of people can’t afford that or things aren’t always planned.”
It would now appear the federal government is ready to recognize the role of parents in those early years by providing an 18-month parental leave option.
“My first thought was, I was jealous, I think it’s a marvelous thing,” Angela Bowen, an associate professor at the University of Saskatchewan who has done a lot of work in maternal health, said.
READ MORE: Should Canada extend its maternity leave to 18 months?
Bowen adds not only could it ease the stress of finding child care for an infant, it’s could also serve as an opportunity for more dad’s to take on a portion of that time.
“For those who want to stay home or maybe have other children and it becomes increasingly challenging to even get out the door in the morning hopefully this would help them,” Bowen said.
So why wouldn’t every parent take Ottawa up on this offer?
“The one issue of course is the money doesn’t change, the total money over the 18 months is the same as the 12 months,” Bowen remarked.
A parent’s EI benefits would be 33 per cent of their average weekly earnings over 18 months versus 55 per cent over 12 months.
Here’s what that means in dollars and cents, the maximum payout for parents would be $362 per week down from $543 during a 12-month timeframe.
“I don’t see us being able to have made it with 33 per cent,” McCubbing said.
However, she admits it’s not something a little advance planning couldn’t fix since your kids are only young once.
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