Labor market policies for expecting and new mothers emerged at the turn of the nineteenth century. The main motivation … for these policies was to ensure the health of mothers and their newborn children. With increased female labor market … gender equality. Proponents of extending parental leave rights for mothers in terms of duration, benefits, and job protection …

-experimental design with survey data, we find that mothers spent on average 10 additional days with their newborn following the … implementation of the insurance plan, and that both mothers and fathers received higher benefits. For children, using both survey data … development. Effects are concentrated among families of mothers with a post-secondary education. These results suggest that while …