Flexible Parental Leave Applications Exceed 30,000; Male Applicants Surpass Females for Two Consecutive Months

(CNA, Taipei, July 7) - Since the flexible parental leave policy was implemented in January, the cumulative number of applicants has surpassed 14,000, with application submissions exceeding 30,000. In June alone, the proportion of male applicants once again surpassed that of females, promoting shared childcare responsibilities among working fathers.

To foster a family-friendly workplace environment, the new flexible parental leave policy allowing for leave applications on a daily basis was launched on January 1st of this year.

The Ministry of Labor announced today in a press release that the "daily application" flexible parental leave has shown a stable growth trend since its inception. As of June 30th, the cumulative number of applicants has exceeded 14,000, and the number of applications has surpassed 30,000, both reaching new highs.

The Ministry of Labor also stated that according to statistics, the cumulative number of individuals applying on a daily basis reached 14,861, accounting for 26.8% of the total 55,425 individuals on parental leave. The cumulative number of daily applications reached 31,581, exceeding 30,000 and representing 42.3% of the total 74,619 applications. In June, there were 6,957 daily applications, accounting for 48.5% of the total 14,356 applications, nearing 50%. This indicates that an increasing number of parents are choosing the more flexible "daily application" mode of parental leave to accompany their young children.

The Ministry of Labor specifically pointed out that among the 14,861 daily applicants, 7,604 were female (51.2%) and 7,257 were male (48.8%). The application ratio between males and females is becoming closer. Since the policy's launch, the proportion of male applicants has shown a steady month-over-month growth trend, increasing from 43.4% in January to a stable 50.7% in June.

The Ministry of Labor stated that the proportion of male applicants in June reached 50.7%, an increase from 50.3% in May, marking the second consecutive month that male applicants surpassed females. The stable increase in male participation indicates that the new measure is effectively promoting the willingness of working fathers to share childcare responsibilities, allowing fathers more flexibility to step up during critical moments.

To encourage employers in small and micro enterprises to support employees applying for flexible parental leave, the Ministry of Labor also offers a "Friendly Employer Reward." For every day an employee applies for parental leave on a daily basis, employers receive a subsidy of NT$1,000. The subsidy is disbursed automatically on a quarterly basis.

The Ministry of Labor pointed out that for the first quarter, eligible entities that had registered their accounts online had their subsidies directly disbursed by the Bureau of Labor Insurance on May 27th. For eligible employers who have not yet registered their account information on the official website, the Bureau of Labor Insurance proactively sent out letters on June 25th, reminding them to register their company's financial account online. Once the account is registered, they will be eligible for future subsidies, ensuring smooth and rapid direct deposit of the reward funds. (Editor: Li Heng-shan) 1150707

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