This is the accessible text file for GAO report number GAO-07-817 
entitled 'Women and Low-Skilled Workers: Other Countries' Policies and 
Practices That May Help These Workers Enter and Remain in the Labor 
Force' which was released on June 14, 2007. 

This text file was formatted by the U.S. Government Accountability 
Office (GAO) to be accessible to users with visual impairments, as part 
of a longer term project to improve GAO products' accessibility. Every 
attempt has been made to maintain the structural and data integrity of 
the original printed product. Accessibility features, such as text 
descriptions of tables, consecutively numbered footnotes placed at the 
end of the file, and the text of agency comment letters, are provided 
but may not exactly duplicate the presentation or format of the printed 
version. The portable document format (PDF) file is an exact electronic 
replica of the printed version. We welcome your feedback. Please E-mail 
your comments regarding the contents or accessibility features of this 
document to Webmaster@gao.gov. 

This is a work of the U.S. government and is not subject to copyright 
protection in the United States. It may be reproduced and distributed 
in its entirety without further permission from GAO. Because this work 
may contain copyrighted images or other material, permission from the 
copyright holder may be necessary if you wish to reproduce this 
material separately. 

GAO: 

June 2007: 

Report to Congressional Requesters: 

United States Government Accountability Office: 

Women And Low-Skilled Workers: 

Other Countries' Policies and Practices That May Help These Workers 
Enter and Remain in the Labor Force: 

GAO-07-817: 

GAO Highlights: 

Highlights of GAO-07-817, a report to congressional requesters 

Why GAO Did This Study: 

Increasing retirements and declining fertility rates, among other 
factors, could affect the labor force growth in many developed 
countries. To maintain the size and productivity of the labor force, 
many governments and employers have introduced strategies to keep 
workers, such as women and low-skilled workers, in the workforce 
throughout their working lives. Because other countries have also 
undertaken efforts to address issues similar to those occurring in the 
U.S., GAO was asked to (1) describe the policies and practices 
implemented in other developed countries that may help women and low-
wage/low-skilled workers enter and remain in the labor force; (2) 
examine the targeted groups’ employment following the implementation of 
the policies and practices; and (3) identify the factors that affect 
employees’ use of workplace benefits and the resulting implications. We 
conducted an extensive review of workplace flexibility and training 
strategies in a range of developed countries, and we conducted site 
visits to selected countries. Our reviews were limited to materials 
that were available in English. While we identified relevant national 
policies in the U.S., we did not determine whether other countries’ 
strategies could be implemented here. Labor provided technical 
comments, and State had no comments on this report. 

What GAO Found: 

Governments and employers have developed a variety of laws, government 
policies, and formal and informal practices, including periods of 
leave, flexible work schedules, child care, and training. Each of the 
countries we reviewed has some form of family leave, such as maternity, 
paternity, or parental leave, that attempts to balance the needs of 
employers and employees, and, often, attempts to help women and low-
wage/low-skilled workers enter and remain in the workforce. In Denmark, 
employed women with a work history of at least 120 hours in the 13 
weeks prior to the leave are allowed 18 weeks of paid maternity leave. 
In addition to family leave for parents, countries provide other types 
of leave, and have established workplace flexibility arrangements for 
workers. U.S. federal law allows for unpaid leave under certain 
circumstances. All of the countries we reviewed, including the United 
States, also subsidize child care for some working parents through a 
variety of means, such as direct benefits to parents for child care or 
tax credits. For example, in Canada, the government provides direct 
financial support of $100 a month per child, to eligible parents for 
each child under 6. Last, governments and employers have a range of 
training and apprenticeship programs to help unemployed people find 
jobs and to help those already in the workforce advance in their 
careers. 

Although research shows that benefits such as parental leave are 
associated with increased employment, research on training programs is 
mixed. Leave reduces the amount of time that mothers spend out of the 
labor force. Cross-national studies show that child care—particularly 
when it is subsidized and regulated with quality standards—is 
positively related to women’s employment. Available research on 
training in some of the countries we reviewed shows mixed results in 
helping the unemployed get jobs. While some initiatives have shown 
promise, some evaluations of specific practices have not been 
conducted. Some country officials said it is difficult to attribute 
effects to a specific policy because the policies are either new or 
because they codified long-standing practices. 

While policies do appear to affect workforce participation, many 
factors can affect the uptake of workplace benefits, and employees’ use 
of these benefits can have implications for employers and employees. 
For example, employees’ use of workplace benefits can create management 
challenges for their employers. Additionally, employees are more likely 
to take family leave if they feel that their employer is supportive. 
However, while a Canadian province provides 12 days of unpaid leave to 
deal with emergencies or sickness, low-wage workers cannot always 
afford to take it. Similarly, the uptake of available benefits can also 
have larger implications for an employee’s career. Some part-time jobs 
have no career advancement opportunities and limited access to other 
benefits. Since employers tend to target their training to higher-
skilled and full-time workers, employees who opt to work part-time may 
have fewer opportunities for on-the-job training that could help them 
advance, according to researchers in the Netherlands. 

What GAO Recommends: 

This report contains no recommendations. 

[Hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-07-817]. 

To view the full product, including the scope and methodology, click on 
the link above. For more information, contact Sigurd R. Nilsen at (202) 
512-7215 or nilsens@gao.gov. 

[End of section] 

Contents: 

Letter: 

Results in Brief: 

Background: 

Countries Have Various Policies and Practices That May Help Some Women 
and Low-Wage/Low-Skilled Workers Enter and Remain in the Labor Force: 

Although Certain Workplace Policies Are Associated with Increased 
Participation in the Labor Force, in General, Effects Are Not 
Definitive: 

While Several Factors Affect Uptake, Employees' Use of Workplace 
Benefits Can Have Implications for Employers and Employees: 

Concluding Observations: 

Appendix I: Objectives, Scope and Methodology: 

Appendix II: Selected Labor Market Statistics: 

Appendix III: Maternity, Paternity, and Parental Leave Provisions: 

Appendix IV: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments: 

Related GAO Products: 

Tables: 

Table 1: Total Fertility Rates, Women's Labor Market Participation, and 
Part-Time Work: 

Table 2: Total Federal Tax Revenue as a Percentage of GDP: 

Table 3: Select Government-Supported Childcare Initiatives: 

Table 4: Educational Attainment Ages 25-64, 2004: 

Table 5: Percentage of Full-time Workers Earning Less than Two-Thirds 
of the Median Wage of Full-time Workers: 

Table 6: Public Expenditures on Training Programs: 

Table 7: Gross National Income, Per Capita, 2005: 

Table 8: Maternity Leave: 

Table 9: Paternity Leave: 

Table 10: Parental Leave: 

Abbreviations: 

CCDF: Child Care and Development Fund: 
EC: European Commission: 
EU: European Union: 
FMLA: Family and Medical Leave Act: 
HHS: Department of Health and Human Services: 
ITA: individual training account: 
OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development: 
SDI: State Disability Insurance: 
TANF: Temporary Aid for Needy Families: 
UK: United Kingdom: 
WIA: Workforce Investment Act: 
WOTC: Work Opportunity Tax Credit: 
WtWTC: Welfare-to-Work Tax Credit: 

United States Government Accountability Office: 
Washington, DC 20548: 

June 14, 2007: 

The Honorable Charles Schumer: 
Chairman: 
The Honorable Carolyn B. Maloney: 
Vice-Chair: 
Joint Economic Committee: 

The Honorable Jack Reed: 
United States Senate: 

The Honorable John D. Dingell: 
House of Representatives: 

Increasing retirements and declining fertility rates, among other 
factors, could affect the labor force growth in many developed 
countries. To maintain the size and productivity of the labor force, 
many governments and employers in developed countries have introduced 
strategies to keep workers who face greater challenges in maintaining 
jobs and incomes, such as women and low-wage/low-skilled workers, in 
the workforce throughout their working lives. To help women remain in 
the labor force consistently, many governments and employers have 
established leave policies and flexible working arrangements to assist 
women in simultaneously managing responsibilities both inside and 
outside the workplace. At the same time, rapid technological change and 
global competition have limited the employment opportunities for some 
low-skilled workers. This development has drawn attention to the need 
for investing in education and training to help low-skilled workers 
find jobs and remain in the labor force. 

Because the experiences of other countries may provide useful 
information for U.S. policymakers, you requested that we examine the 
policies and practices in other developed countries that may attract 
and retain individuals who otherwise might not be in the workforce, or 
who might drop in and out of the labor force more than other groups. 
Specifically, you asked us to (1) describe the policies and practices 
implemented in other developed countries that may help women and low- 
wage/low-skilled workers enter and remain in the labor force; (2) 
examine the change in the targeted groups' employment following the 
implementation of the policies and practices; and (3) identify the 
factors that affect employees' use of workplace benefits and the 
resulting workplace implications. 

To address these issues, we conducted an extensive literature review of 
workplace flexibility and training strategies in a range of developed 
countries to provide descriptive information about some of their 
policies and practices. We conducted site visits or in-depth interviews 
with various officials in four developed countries--Canada, the United 
Kingdom (UK), the Netherlands, and Denmark--selected for the variety of 
work-family and workforce development policies they have adopted, which 
include a range of policies and practices targeted specifically to 
women and low-wage/low-skilled workers. We interviewed government 
officials, researchers, private employers, and trade associations or 
unions in each of the countries about their experiences with such 
policies and practices. We also visited Belgium to meet with officials 
from several European Union (EU) institutions, such as the European 
Commission and the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living 
and Working Conditions. We reviewed four other countries (France, 
Ireland, New Zealand, and Sweden) based on policies and practices they 
had implemented for our target groups. Information about these 
countries' policies/practices came from extensive literature reviews 
and discussions with U.S. and foreign-based researchers. 

To provide context, we identified relevant national policies in the 
United States. However, we did not conduct a comprehensive review of 
similar workplace flexibility and training strategies in the United 
States, nor did we seek to determine whether other countries' 
strategies could be implemented here. Additionally, our review of 
related laws and regulations of the other countries relied on secondary 
sources of analysis rather than independent analysis of foreign laws. 
Our review of laws and regulations was limited by the extent that 
specific information from secondary sources was accessible and written 
in English. For a more detailed explanation of our methodology, see 
appendix I. 

We conducted our work between July 2006 and May 2007 in accordance with 
generally accepted government auditing standards. 

Results in Brief: 

Governments and employers in the countries we studied have developed a 
variety of laws, government policies, and formal and informal 
practices, including periods of leave, flexible work schedules, 
childcare, and training for women and low-wage/low-skilled workers. 
Each of the countries we reviewed has some form of paid family leave, 
such as maternity, paternity, or parental leave, that attempts to 
balance the needs of employers and employees and, often, attempts to 
help women and low-wage/low-skilled workers enter and remain in the 
workforce. For example, in Denmark, employed women with a work history 
of at least 120 hours in the 13 weeks prior to the leave are allowed 18 
weeks of paid maternity leave. In addition to family leave for parents, 
countries provide other types of leave and have established workplace 
flexibility arrangements for workers. U.S. federal law allows for up to 
12 weeks of unpaid leave for most workers. All of the countries also 
subsidize childcare for some working parents to some extent through a 
variety of means, such as direct benefits to parents for childcare and 
tax credits. For example, in Canada, the government provides direct 
financial support of $100 a month per child, to eligible parents for 
each child under age 6. Last, governments and employers have a range of 
training and apprenticeship programs to help unemployed people find 
jobs and to help those already in the workforce advance in their 
careers. For example, Denmark has had a public system in place since 
the mid-1960s that allows low-skilled workers to receive free 
education, wage subsidies, and funding for transportation costs. About 
one-half of unskilled workers took part in training courses that were 
either publicly financed or provided privately by employers in the past 
year, according to a Danish researcher. 

Although research shows that the provision of some workplace benefits, 
such as paid family leave, is associated with increased employment, 
research on training programs has shown mixed results, and few 
evaluations of certain policies and practices have been conducted. For 
example, evidence from cross-national studies shows that the 
availability of childcare--particularly when it is subsidized and 
regulated with quality standards such as a high staff-to-child ratio-- 
is positively related to women's employment. These and other cross- 
national studies also indicate that paid maternity leave helps women 
enter and remain in the labor force. For example, one study examining 
paid maternity leave of varying lengths of time in several Western 
European countries, including Denmark, France, Ireland, and Sweden, 
found that such leave may increase women's employment rate by about 3- 
4 percent. In addition, research demonstrates that the provision of 
leave with job protection reduces the amount of time that women spend 
out of the labor force. Moreover, a study reviewing Sweden's leave 
policies determined that parental leave set aside for the father allows 
women to shorten their maternity leave and limit career disruptions. 
Research shows mixed results in whether training helps the unemployed 
get jobs. However, nearly all evaluations of Canadian and U.S. training 
programs show that the programs helped the unemployed to get jobs, 
according to a literature review by the Canadian government. 
Furthermore, it is difficult to attribute effects to a specific policy 
for a variety of reasons, and evaluations may be difficult to conduct. 
Some policies simply codified into law a widely used practice. For 
example, a Dutch official told us that it was very common for Dutch 
women to choose to work part-time even before legislation passed that 
promoted employees' rights to reduce their working hours. 

Many factors can affect whether employees take full advantage of 
benefits, and use of these benefits can have implications for employers 
and employees. For example, an EU report that examined several of the 
countries we studied found that employees are more likely to take 
family leave if they feel that their employer is supportive. In 
addition, the province of Saskatchewan in Canada provides 12 days of 
unpaid leave per year, but low-wage workers cannot always afford to 
take it, according to a Saskatchewan labor official. Employees' 
personal experiences can also affect their uptake of benefits. For 
example, employers and governments may have to convince employees to 
take advantage of workplace training, because these workers may have 
had negative experiences with education in the past, according to 
employee representatives from Denmark's largest trade union 
confederation. Further, some employers may face issues when employees 
do use the available benefits. An employer in Saskatchewan, Canada, for 
example, said that although he was able to hire temporary help to cover 
an employee who was on maternity leave, he faced an unexpected staff 
shortage when the employee decided toward the end of her leave not to 
return to work and the temporary employee had found another job. The 
uptake of available benefits can also have larger implications for an 
employee's career. Long parental leaves, for example, may lead to an 
actual or perceived deterioration in women's labor market skills, 
according to an EU report, and can have negative effects on future 
earnings. In addition, since employers tend to target their training to 
higher skilled and full-time workers, employees who opt to work part- 
time may have fewer opportunities for on-the-job training that could 
help them advance, according to researchers in the Netherlands. 

We provided a draft of this report to the Departments of Labor and 
State for their review and comment. The Department of Labor provided 
technical comments, which we have incorporated where appropriate. The 
Department of State did not have comments on this report. 

Background: 

According to the Department of Labor, in 2005, about 60 percent of U.S. 
women age 16 and older were in the workforce, compared to 46 percent in 
1975. Some U.S. employers offer alternative work arrangements to help 
workers manage both work and other life responsibilities.[Footnote 1] 
One type of alternative work arrangement allows workers to reduce their 
work hours from the traditional 40 hours per week, such as with part- 
time work or job sharing.[Footnote 2] Some arrangements adopted by 
employers, such as flextime, allow employees to begin and end their 
workday outside the traditional 9-to-5 work hours. Other arrangements, 
such as telecommuting from home, allow employees to work in an 
alternative location. Childcare facilities are also available at some 
workplaces to help workers with their care giving responsibilities. In 
addition to benefiting workers, these arrangements may also benefit 
employers by helping them recruit and retain workers.[Footnote 3] 

Federal law establishes minimum levels of unpaid leave for individuals 
under certain circumstances. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 
1993 enables certain employees to take up to 12 weeks per year of 
unpaid leave upon the birth or adoption of a child, or to care for 
qualifying family members or themselves in the event of a serious 
health condition with the guarantee of a similar job upon 
return.[Footnote 4] The law applies to private companies with 50 or 
more employees, and all federal, state, and local government 
agencies.[Footnote 5] To be eligible for leave, employees seeking leave 
must have worked for their employer for at least 1 year and for over 
1,250 hours during the last year. 

Some state laws provide greater family or medical leave rights than the 
federal law.[Footnote 6] In July 2004, California became the first 
state in the country to offer a comprehensive paid family leave 
program.[Footnote 7] The program allows workers to receive up to 6 
weeks per year of partial wage replacement for leave taken to care for 
a seriously ill family member (child, spouse, parent, or domestic 
partner) or to care for a child within 1 year of birth or placement for 
adoption or foster care. The program, which is administered by the 
State Disability Insurance (SDI) system, is funded entirely by employee 
contributions. The paid family leave law requires a 1-week waiting 
period and applies to all employees who pay into the SDI system, 
regardless of employer size. In May 2007, Washington state enacted paid 
family leave legislation that grants up to 5 weeks of paid leave a year 
to certain employees to care for a newborn or newly adopted 
child.[Footnote 8] 

The federal government also provides childcare subsidies for certain 
low-income families, and tax breaks for most parents, both to support 
their ability to work and to balance work-family responsibilities. 
Under programs funded by the Child Care and Development Fund 
(CCDF),[Footnote 9] Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and 
state resources, states have the flexibility to serve certain types of 
low-income families. The Head Start program provides comprehensive 
early childhood education and development services to low-income 
preschool children, on a part-or full-day basis. Further, the Child and 
Dependent Care Tax Credit allows parents to reduce their tax on their 
federal income tax return if they paid someone to care for a child 
under age 13 or a qualifying spouse or dependent so they could work or 
look for work.[Footnote 10] The credit is a percentage of the amount of 
work-related child and dependent care expenses paid to a care provider. 
The credit can be up to 35 percent of qualifying expenses, depending 
upon income. 

The federal government also offers workforce development and training 
programs designed to assist low-wage/low-skilled workers in the United 
States. The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA)[Footnote 11] 
requires states and localities to bring together a number of federally 
funded employment and training services into a single system--the one- 
stop system. Funded through four federal agencies and administered by 
the U.S. Department of Labor, these programs provide services through a 
statewide network of one-stop career centers. Low-skilled workers and 
dislocated workers can choose the training they determine best for 
themselves, working in consultation with a case manager. Additionally, 
the federal government provides incentives for companies to hire low- 
income workers, public assistance recipients, and workers with 
disabilities. The Work Opportunity Tax Credit is a federal tax credit 
that offers employers tax breaks when they hire certain categories of 
job seekers, including TANF recipients. The credit is designed to help 
people move from welfare to work and gain on-the-job experience. 
Additionally, the Welfare-to-Work Tax Credit (WtWTC) is a federal 
income tax credit that encourages employers to hire long-term TANF 
Assistance recipients. 

Most of the countries we studied are members of the European Union 
(EU);[Footnote 12] as such, they need to take EU laws into account when 
formulating their policies. EU legislation on employment-related issues 
typically provides minimum standards or basic rights for individuals 
across member states. For example, the 1997 directive on equal 
treatment of part-time work mandates that people holding less than full-
time jobs be given pro rated pay and benefits without 
discrimination.[Footnote 13] EU directives are generally binding in 
terms of the results to be achieved,[Footnote 14] but an opt-out option 
occasionally allows member states to delay action. According to an EU 
official, the Union also sets targets to be achieved voluntarily at 
some future date. Since 2000, for example, member states have 
collectively agreed to increase the number of women in employment, the 
number of adults in lifelong learning, and the provision of childcare 
by the end of the decade. The EU offers financial support to its member 
states to help them succeed in employment goals.[Footnote 15] For 
example, countries can request money from the European Social Fund 
(ESF) for public or private programs that improve people's skills and 
employability.[Footnote 16] 

Other differences are relevant to consideration of the workforce 
attachment policies of our study countries. Although U.S. women have 
high levels of educational attainment, their workforce participation, 
in general, is lower than that of the countries we studied. In 2004, 
the educational attainment of women ages 25-64 in the United States, at 
13.4 years, surpassed that of women in all other study countries (see 
app. II, table 4). While a higher education level is generally 
associated with greater likelihood of labor force participation, labor 
force participation for U.S. women is lower than that in any of our 
study countries except Ireland and New Zealand. For example, in 
Denmark, labor force participation was 85 percent, compared to 75 
percent in the United States, and 68 percent in Ireland. In the 
Netherlands, a country where 36 percent of all employment is part-time, 
women constitute more than three-quarters of employees working less 
than 30 hours per week (see table 1). 

Table 1: Total Fertility Rates, Women's Labor Market Participation, and 
Part-Time Work: 

Country: Sweden; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 1.75; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 85.3%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 13.5%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 67.1%. 

Country: Denmark; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 1.78; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 84.9%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 18.0%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 64.1%. 

Country: Canada; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 1.53; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 81.5%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 18.3%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 68.6%. 

Country: France; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 1.91; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 80.3%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 13.6%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 79.1%. 

Country: The Netherlands; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 1.73; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 77.4%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 35.7%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 76.3%. 

Country: The UK; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 1.76; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 76.8%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 23.6%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 77.3%. 

Country: The U.S; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 2.05; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 75.3%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 12.8%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 68.4%. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 2.01; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 75.2%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 21.7%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 74.8%. 

Country: Ireland; 
Total fertility rate[A]: 1.93; 
Labor force participation rates of women, ages 25-54, 2005: 67.9%; 
Part-time employment as a proportion of total employment: 18.6%; 
Women's share of part-time employment: 79.1%. 

Source: OECD Employment Outlook 2006: Boosting Jobs and Income (OECD, 
2006) and OECD in Figures, 2006-2007 (OECD, 2006). 

[A] The fertility rate is defined as the total number of children born 
per 1,000 women of childbearing age. 

[End of table] 

Differences in taxation across countries reflect national choices, 
which are largely determined by economic and social priorities. The 
ratio of total tax revenues to gross domestic product (GDP) is a 
commonly used measure of state involvement in national economies. 
Countries with high tax-to-GDP ratios generally pay more from the 
public budget for services that citizens would have to pay for 
themselves--or do without--in lower-taxed countries. In 2004, Sweden 
had the highest tax revenue as a percentage of GDP among our study 
countries, at 50.4 percent. Denmark came next at 48.8 percent, followed 
by France at 43.4 percent. The United States had the lowest tax-to-GDP 
ratio in 2004, at 25.5 percent (see table 2). 

Table 2: Total Federal Tax Revenue as a Percentage of GDP: 

Country: Sweden; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 50.4. 

Country: Denmark[A]; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 48.8. 

Country: France[A]; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 43.4. 

Country: Netherlands; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 37.5. 

Country: United Kingdom; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 36.0. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 35.6. 

Country: Ireland; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 30.1. 

Country: Canada; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 33.5. 

Country: United States; 
Percentage of GDP, 2004: 25.5. 

Source: OECD Revenue Statistics 2006. 

[A] The total tax revenue has been reduced by the amount of the capital 
transfer that represents uncollected taxes. 

[End of table] 

Countries Have Various Policies and Practices That May Help Some Women 
and Low-Wage/Low-Skilled Workers Enter and Remain in the Labor Force: 

Governments and employers in the countries we studied developed a 
variety of laws, government policies, and formal and informal 
practices, including periods of leave, flexible work schedules, 
childcare, and training. Each of the countries we reviewed has some 
form of paid family leave, such as maternity, paternity, or parental 
leave, that attempts to balance the needs of employers and employees 
and, often, attempts to help women and low-wage/low-skilled workers 
enter and remain in the workforce. In addition to family leave for 
parents, countries provide other types of leave, and have established 
workplace flexibility arrangements for workers. All of the countries 
also subsidize childcare for some working parents through a variety of 
means, such as direct benefits to parents for childcare and tax 
credits. Last, governments and employers have a range of training and 
apprenticeship programs to help unemployed people find jobs and to help 
those already in the workforce advance in their careers. 

Family Leave Policies Differed In Four Major Ways, Including 
Eligibility Requirements and Length, Payment, and Flexibility: 

Many countries have developed and funded parental leave policies to 
assist employees in combining their work and family lives, recognizing, 
in part, the need to promote women's participation in the labor force. 
A 1996 directive of the European Council requires all countries in the 
EU--including each of the European countries we reviewed--to introduce 
legislation on parental leave that would provide all working parents 
the right to care for their newborn or newly adopted child for at least 
3 months while retaining a position of equal status, recommending that 
benefits be paid during that time. In the U.S., the FMLA allows 
eligible employees approximately 3 months of unpaid leave that may be 
used for these purposes. (For an overview of the policies in our study 
countries, see app. III.) Family leave policies in the countries we 
studied were generally funded through tax revenues and general 
revenues. Because some of these countries are social welfare states, 
their tax revenues represent a greater share of their GDP, allowing for 
the funding of various policies. For example, Canada, the UK, and the 
Netherlands fund paid leave policies in part through national insurance 
programs, which use payroll taxes paid by employers and employees. 
Denmark's paid maternity, paternity, and parental leaves are financed 
by income tax revenues through an 8 percent tax on all earned 
income.[Footnote 17] 

Eligibility provisions are a part of most leave policies we reviewed, 
and sometimes the service time with an employer determines the amount 
of leave a parent can take. Many national leave policies in our study 
countries require employees to work for a period of time before they 
can take leave, giving employers assurances that employees are 
committed to their jobs. For example, in Denmark, employed women with a 
work history of at least 120 hours in the 13 weeks prior to the leave 
are allowed 18 weeks of paid maternity leave.[Footnote 18] In some 
countries, though, all parents are entitled to take family leave, which 
in some cases is paid. In Sweden, all parents are entitled to parental 
benefits whether or not they are working. In the UK, by law, all 
expectant employees can take up to 52 weeks of maternity leave, 
regardless of how long they have worked for their employer. 

To enhance workers' ability to take leave, the countries we studied 
replace all or part of the wages they forgo while on leave. Dutch 
employees on maternity leave are entitled to receive 100 percent of 
their wages, up to a maximum; their partners receive their regular rate 
of pay from their employers. In the UK, women who meet qualifying 
conditions of length of service and who earn a minimum amount for the 
national insurance system--or, on average, 87 British pounds per week-
-can receive payment generally equal to 90 percent or less of their 
average weekly earnings.[Footnote 19] In Ireland, women can generally 
be paid at 80 percent of earnings, subject to her contributions into 
the social insurance system. However, employers may offer more leave 
than legally required. 

Because leave is intended to help parents balance career 
responsibilities with caring--not just for newborns, but for children 
in general--many countries allow parents to take their allotted 
parental leave all at once or to divide it into parts. In the 
Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, and the UK, parents have the option of 
using their leave flexibly by dividing it into discrete parts, 
sometimes with the consent of an employer. In the Netherlands, for 
example, parents may divide the leave into a maximum of three parts and 
can take the leave simultaneously or following one another. The 
Netherlands, Sweden, and Denmark allow parents the use of parental 
leave until their child turns either 8 or 9, while the UK allows the 
use of parental leave until a child turns 5. 

Recognizing that familial obligations may extend beyond an employee's 
children, some countries allow workers to take leave to care for family 
members. The amount of time workers can take to care for family members 
varies among the countries we reviewed. In Canada, all employees are 
eligible to take 8 weeks of unpaid leave to provide care and support to 
a seriously ill family member or someone considered as a family 
member.[Footnote 20] In other countries, the leave is more limited. New 
Zealand requires that all employers provide a minimum of 5 days of paid 
sick leave for an eligible employee's own illness or to care for family 
members.[Footnote 21] 

Flexible Working Arrangements Help Employees Balance Work and Private 
Responsibilities: 

A few countries have developed national policies that promote flexible 
work opportunities, apart from leave, that may help women and low-wage/ 
low-skilled employees join and stay in the workforce. In the 
Netherlands, by law all eligible employees--whether or not they are 
parents--have the right to reduce or increase working hours, no matter 
their reason for doing so.[Footnote 22] Employers can deny the request 
only if the change would result in a serious obstacle, such as not 
having enough other workers to cover the hours an employee wishes to 
reduce. Similarly, the UK's 2003 Right to Request Flexible Working and 
Duty to Consider law allows workers to request changes to the hours or 
location of their work, to accommodate the care of children and certain 
adults.[Footnote 23] According to government officials from the UK 
Departments of Trade and Industry, and Communities and Local 
Government, this law provides the government with a cost-effective 
means to help women return to work. Although similar to the law in the 
Netherlands, this law provides employees with less defined rights, and 
employers in the UK may refuse an employee's request when the proposed 
arrangement is not supportable by the needs of the business. 

Similarly, flexible working opportunities for employees are often 
adjusted or developed by individual employers. Many employers adjusted 
the Right to Request law by extending to all employees the benefits it 
required, according to government officials from the UK Departments of 
Trade and Industry and Communities and Local Government. In other cases 
employers have developed new opportunities. One local government 
employer in the UK offers employees the ability to take a career break 
for up to 5 years to care for children or elders, with the right to 
return to the same position. Employees of the organization are also 
able to take time off when children are home on holidays, share the 
responsibilities of one position with another employee through the 
practice of job sharing, and vary their working hours. In Saskatchewan, 
Canada, one employer reported allowing employees to average their work 
hours over a 2-week period, giving them the ability to accumulate 
overtime hours and have a sense of control over their time. In Denmark, 
a large employer allowed an employee who was returning to work from a 
long-term illness to gradually increase her working hours until she 
reached a full-time schedule over the course of several months. 
Flexible working arrangements in the United States have been adopted by 
some employers, but are not mandated in federal law. 

Childcare Policies Assist Working Parents: 

All of our study countries have made a public investment in child care, 
a means of allowing women to access paid employment and balance work 
and family, according to the European Commission. (See table 3). In 
Canada, for example, the government provides direct financial support 
of $100 a month to eligible parents for each child under 6. In New 
Zealand, support is available through a childcare tax credit of $310 
per year to parents who have more than $940 in childcare costs. 
Researchers have reported that, like leave benefits, early childhood 
education and care services in European countries are financed largely 
by the government.[Footnote 24] According to these researchers, funding 
is provided by national, state, or regional and local authorities, and 
the national share typically is dominant in services for preschool-age 
children. These researchers also reported that care for very young 
children, and, to a lesser extent, for preschool children, is partially 
funded through parental co-payments that cover an average of 15 percent 
to 25 percent of costs. 

In some countries the provision of early childhood care and education 
is viewed as a social right, in others as a shared responsibility. In 
Sweden and Denmark, parents are guaranteed a place in the state 
childcare system for children of a certain age, according to the 
European Commission. More than 90 percent of Danish children are in 
publicly supported childcare facilities, according to a Danish 
researcher. Other countries, including France, take a similar view with 
respect to early childhood education. In France about 90 percent of 
children ages 3 to 6 and about 35 percent of 2-year-olds attend public 
preschools, provided free of charge to parents, according to research. 
Other countries view the provision of child care as a responsibility 
shared among government, employers, and parents. In the Netherlands, 
overall, employers, employees, and the government are each expected to 
pay about one-third of childcare costs, according to a report by the 
European Commission (see table 3). 

Table 3: Select Government-Supported Childcare Initiatives: 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): Canada (Canada spends about 0.2 percent of its GDP on pre 
primary education for 3 to 6 year olds; for all child care, 0-12, the 
funding amounts to 0.4 percent of GDP.); 
Direct financial benefits: Universal Child Care Benefit: 
Direct financial support of $100 a month--up to $1,200 a year--to 
eligible parents for each child under 6; Provincial childcare subsidy: 
Saskatchewan's childcare subsidy provides subsidies for families with 
children in provincially licensed childcare facilities. Low-income 
parents receive subsidies that cover 85 percent of child care fees on 
average. The subsidies are paid directly to child care facilities; 
Tax incentives: Child Tax Benefit: 
Tax-free monthly payment to eligible families with children under 18; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
Child Care Spaces Initiative: 
Supports the creation of up to 25,000 new childcare spaces in 2007. 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): Denmark (Denmark devotes 2.1 percent of its GDP to fund all 
kindergarten and leisure-time services.); 
Direct financial benefits: Subsidy: 
The government pays the majority of childcare costs and parents pay 
about one-fourth; Tax incentives: [Empty]; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
Space in childcare system: 
The public childcare system guarantees a place for each child beginning 
at 6 months of age. If childcare centers have waiting lists, local 
municipalities find alternative solutions. 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): France (France devotes at least 1 percent of its GDP to 
childcare and pre primary education services.); 
Direct financial benefits: Subsidy: 
Parents pay about 12 percent of their income toward the cost of center-
based care for children under 3; 
Tax incentives: [Empty]; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
Early education: 
Every child age 3-6 has the right to attend preschool free of charge. 
The enrollment of 2-year-olds from socioeconomically disadvantaged 
backgrounds is also a priority. 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): Ireland (Funding of public pre primary education services: 
0.44 percent of GDP [0.39 percent public and 0.05 percent private]); 
Direct financial benefits: Child Benefit and Early Childcare 
Supplement: 
Parents may receive payment for each child up to age 16, or 19, under 
certain conditions, regardless of employment status or use of 
childcare. Parents with young children up to age 6 can receive a 
supplement to the Child Benefit; 
Tax incentives: Tax incentives: 
Various financial incentives, including tax relief and allowances, have 
been put in place to encourage the private sector--e.g., employers, the 
voluntary sector, or other firms and individuals--to increase the 
available provision of childcare; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
Childcare spaces: 
In 2006, the government announced measures to create 50,000 places in 
after-school care by 2010. 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): Netherlands (The Netherlands devotes 0.38 percent of its 
GDP [0.37 percent public and 0.01 percent private] to fund pre primary 
educational services.); 
Direct financial benefits: Subsidy: 
The government reimburses parents for at least one-third of childcare 
costs, based on income. Low-income parents may receive reimbursement 
for up to 95 percent of costs; As of January 2007, employers have a 
mandatory contribution of about one-third of childcare costs (one-sixth 
per parent) to be collected by raising the employers' contribution to 
unemployment insurance premiums[A]; 
Tax incentives: [Empty]; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
[Empty]. 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): New Zealand[B]; 
Direct financial benefits: [Empty]; 
Tax incentives: Childcare Tax Credit: 
A tax rebate of $310 per year is available to parents who have paid 
more than $940 per year for childcare; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
Early education: 
All 3-and 4-year-olds in teacher- led early childhood education 
services can receive up to 20 hours of education per week, free of 
charge, beginning July 2007. 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): Sweden (Sweden devotes 1.9 percent of its GDP to fund 
preschool services.); 
Direct financial benefits: Child Benefit: 
Parents of children under the age of 16 can receive a child allowance; 
Subsidy: 
Parental fees for childcare--which may be through regular preschools or 
home-based care--accounted for about 17 percent of the cost in 1998; 
Tax incentives: [Empty]; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
Early education: 
Children of stay-at-home parents can take part in this education, which 
is generally available free of charge. 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): United Kingdom (The UK spends 0.47 percent of its GDP to 
funding pre primary educational services [0.45 percent public and 0.02 
percent private]); 
Direct financial benefits: Emergency discretionary funds: 
Some single parents may be eligible to receive funds to assist in 
overcoming emergencies--including those related to childcare--that 
arise in the first 2 months of employment; 
Tax incentives: Tax credits: 
Tax credits are available to assist working parents in paying up to 80 
percent of the remainder of childcare costs; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
Early education: 
Early education is provided for 12½ hours per week for 38 weeks a year 
for all 3-and 4-year-olds free of charge. 

Country (percentage of GDP country spends on childcare and/or early 
education): United States (The United States spends about 0.4 percent 
of its GDP on funding of public pre primary education services.); 
Direct financial benefits: Child Care and Development Fund: 
Eligible parents may receive vouchers or certificates to purchase child 
care services with a legally-operating provider of choice; 
Tax incentives: Dependent Care Tax Credit: 
Tax credits are available up to 35 percent of qualifying expenses, or 
up to $3,000 in childcare expenses for one child; 
Provision of space in the national childcare or early education system: 
Head Start: 
Provides early childhood education and development services to low 
income preschool children. 

Source: GAO analysis of information from country officials, OECD, and 
government and related Websites. 

Note: We were unable to identify all child care information for each of 
the countries we examined. 

[A] According to the Dutch Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, 
the contributions would be offset for employers by reducing taxes on 
business profits. 

[B] Comparable information on GDP in New Zealand was unavailable. 

[End of table] 

Aside from public support for childcare, some employers in the 
countries we reviewed offered additional resources for their employees' 
childcare needs. For example, although not mandated by law until 
January 2007, many employers in the Netherlands had been contributing 
toward their employees' cost for childcare. In the Netherlands, about 
two-thirds of working parents received the full child care contribution 
from their employers, according to a recent survey.[Footnote 25] In 
addition, a Canadian union negotiated employer subsidies to reimburse 
some childcare expenses for its members, according to union 
representatives. 

Training Programs Can Be Targeted at the Unemployed or Low-Skilled 
Workers: 

Our study countries provide services intended to help the unemployed 
develop the skills necessary to obtain work. These include providing 
training directly and providing private entities and employers with 
resources to provide training or apprenticeships. To address the skill 
deficit of those who are unemployed, the UK, for example, has recently 
adopted recommendations to increase adult skills training, and create 
an integrated employment and skills service, among other 
things.[Footnote 26] In Denmark, the unemployed are required to accept 
offers, such as education and training, after 9 months of unemployment 
to help them find work or they will lose benefits, according to 
employee representatives from the largest Danish trade union 
confederation that represents the public and the private 
sectors.[Footnote 27] Particular groups of the unemployed that may face 
difficulty in finding employment, such as women and the low-skilled, 
may be offered training earlier. Employers in Denmark may receive wage 
subsidies for providing job-related experience and training to the 
unemployed, or for providing apprenticeships in fields with a shortage 
of available labor. In the Netherlands, the government provides 
individual support--including training, apprenticeships, or job 
coaching--for the unemployed to help them secure a job, according to 
the Dutch Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment. In the United 
States, training services generally are available through the WIA 
programs, which are provided by government. 

Local governments and private entities also seek to help the unemployed 
obtain and upgrade skills. For example, a local government council in 
the UK provides unemployed women training in occupations in which they 
are underrepresented, such as construction and public transport. While 
the women are not paid wages during the typical 8-12 weeks of training, 
they may receive unemployment insurance benefits as well as additional 
support for childcare and transportation. Additionally, a privately run 
association in the Netherlands provides entrepreneurial training to 
women who have been on public assistance for at least 10 years to start 
their own businesses, according to an organization official. The 
association pays the local college to provide the business-related 
classes and coaches, who help participants develop business plans. Both 
of these initiatives were funded jointly by the local governments and 
the European Social Fund. 

In addition to providing training to the unemployed, our study 
countries also have training initiatives focused on those already in 
the workforce. For example, Canada introduced an initiative to ensure 
that Canadians have the right skills for changing work and life 
demands.[Footnote 28] The program's goal is to enhance nine essential 
skills--reading text, document use, working with numbers, writing, oral 
communication, working with others, continuous learning, thinking 
skills, and computer use--that provide the foundation for learning all 
other skills and enable people to evolve with their jobs and adapt to 
workplace changes, according to the government. The broad-based 
initiative provides resources to help organizations incorporate 
workplace literacy and the essential skills into existing human 
resources practices. Denmark has had a public system in place since the 
mid-1960s that allows low-skilled workers to receive free education, 
wage subsidies, and funding for transportation costs. About one-half of 
unskilled workers took part in training courses that were either 
publicly financed or provided privately by employers in the past year, 
according to a Danish researcher. The UK has also developed an 
initiative that offers employers training assistance to meets their 
needs. The UK's Train to Gain program, based on an earlier pilot 
program, provides employers free training for employees to achieve work-
related, competence-based qualifications that reflect the skills needed 
to do a job effectively. Qualifications can be earned in a variety of 
occupational areas, such as providing health and social services. To 
qualify for Train to Gain, employers need to agree to at least a 
minimum level of paid time that employees will be allowed to use for 
training. During the pilot program, employers were given a wage subsidy 
to compensate for giving employees paid time off; evaluations showed 
the effect of these subsidies to be mixed. Currently, only employers 
with fewer than 50 full-time employees are eligible for limited 
subsidies under Train to Gain. Train to Gain also provides skills 
advice to employers and helps match business needs with training 
providers. The UK Leitch Review recommended that the government provide 
the bulk of funding for basic skills training and that all adult 
vocational skills funding be routed through programs such as Train to 
Gain.[Footnote 29] 

As is the case with other benefits, many training programs aimed at 
increasing employees' skills are initiated privately by employers and 
employees. For example, an employer in Saskatchewan reported that he 
supports employees' advancement by paying for necessary educational 
courses, such as those that prepare employees for required licenses. A 
large government employer in the UK offers flexible training to make it 
more easily accessible to women. For example, training is made 
available online, from work or home, as well as through DVDs that can 
be viewed at one's convenience. In the Netherlands, according to an 
employer representative, most training is developed through agreements 
in which employers agree to pay. In Denmark, a director in the Ministry 
of Education reported that some companies give employees the right to 2 
weeks per year of continuing education in relevant and publicly funded 
education. 

Although Certain Workplace Policies Are Associated with Increased 
Participation in the Labor Force, in General, Effects Are Not 
Definitive: 

Research has found that workplace policies such as childcare and family 
leave encourage women to enter and return to the workforce, while 
evaluations of training policies show mixed results. Readily available 
childcare appears to enable more women to participate in the labor 
market, especially when it is subsidized and meets quality standards 
such as having a high staff-to-child ratio and high proportion of 
certified staff. Women are also more likely to enter and remain in the 
workforce if they have paid family leave, although the length of leave 
affects their employment. An extensive review of available research by 
the European Commission shows mixed results in whether training helps 
the unemployed get jobs. Some training initiatives have shown promise 
but have not been formally evaluated. In general, researchers and 
officials reported that it is difficult to determine the effects of a 
policy for a variety of reasons. 

Childcare and Paid Family Leave Are Associated with an Increase in 
Labor Force Participation: 

Readily available childcare, especially when it is subsidized and 
regulated with quality standards, such as a high staff-to-child ratio 
and a high proportion of certified staff, appears to increase women's 
participation in the labor force by helping them balance work and 
family responsibilities, according to research from several cross- 
national studies. While studies show that childcare is associated with 
an increase in female labor force participation, a report by the 
European Commission found that, if parents feel that there are problems 
with the quality of childcare--as is the case with childcare in the UK 
due, in part, to staff recruitment and retention issues--they will be 
less likely to use it.[Footnote 30] Additionally, the European 
Commission reports that women prolong their return to work when 
childcare is not subsidized and its costs are high. Low-wage workers, 
especially single parents, who are predominantly women, are 
particularly sensitive to the price of childcare, according to a 
European Commission report. Research from the United States also shows 
that highly priced childcare can deter mothers from working, according 
to a review of the literature. The association between childcare and 
women's labor force participation is found in several studies that 
control for a variety of factors, including individual countries' 
cultural norms and experiences. However, the relationship between early 
childhood education--which acts as childcare for some parents--and 
women's labor force participation is uncertain. Because many unemployed 
mothers also place their children in subsidized preschool, any impact 
that the preschool has on encouraging mothers to work may appear to be 
diminished, according to a cross-national study.[Footnote 31] 

Research shows that paid family leave encourages women's employment by 
helping them to enter the labor market and to return to work more 
quickly after having a child. Women who have a set leave period, and a 
guarantee of a job upon return, tend to return to work more quickly 
than women who have to quit their job and re-enter the labor market. 
One extensive review of the literature on family leave found that leave 
increases the chance that women will return to work by the end of the 
year following the birth.[Footnote 32] Another study examining paid 
maternity leave of varying lengths of time in several Western European 
countries, including Denmark, France, Ireland, and Sweden, concluded 
that maternity leave may increase women's employment rate by about 3-4 
percent.[Footnote 33] Furthermore, paid leave set aside for fathers has 
allowed Swedish mothers to return to work more quickly since fathers 
are encouraged to share in the caring duties, according to one 
study.[Footnote 34] 

Research findings, however, are not conclusive as to the ideal length 
of family leave to encourage women to return to work. For example, if 
leave is too short, women may quit their job in order to care for their 
child, according to a European Commission report. Another study, 
however, found that if leave is too lengthy, it may actually discourage 
women from returning to work after having a child. One researcher 
stated that French mothers with at least two children returned to the 
workforce less frequently when they became eligible for 3 years of 
family leave. On the contrary, some researchers found that Sweden's 
lengthy leave allowed more women to enter and remain in the labor force 
in the long run. One review of the literature concluded that leave of 
up to about 1 year is positively associated with women's employment, 
while another found that after 20 weeks, the effect of leave on 
employment begins to deteriorate. 

The Effects of Most Workplace Policies and Practices, Including 
Training, Are Not Definitive: 

Evaluations of training for the unemployed, where they exist, have 
shown mixed results in helping individual workers. Research on training 
program participants from Sweden and Denmark found that training 
programs do not appear to positively affect all participants' 
employment. While the Danish government's labor market policies seem to 
have successfully lowered the overall unemployment rate to around 4 
percent by the end of 2006, according to Danish officials, the effect 
of specific training programs on participants' employment is difficult 
to discern.[Footnote 35] On the other hand, a number of evaluations of 
French training programs suggest that these programs help participants 
secure jobs. New Zealand's evaluation of two of its training programs, 
which provide both remedial and vocational skills to participants, 
found that the training had a small effect on the participants' 
employability.[Footnote 36] Nearly all evaluations of Canadian and U.S. 
training programs show that the programs increased the ability of the 
unemployed to get jobs, according to a literature review by the 
Canadian government. According to a European Commission report, one 
researcher's review of 70 training program evaluations, including those 
in Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the UK, suggested that 
training programs have a modest likelihood of making a positive impact 
on post-program employment rates. However, the European Commission 
reports that many studies on individual outcomes are based upon short- 
term data, while the effects on participants' employment may not be 
evident for 1 to 2 years or more. This is partly because participants 
may not actively search for a job while they are in training. In the 
long run, however, training programs may lead participants to find more 
suitable jobs and spend less time out of the workforce. 

Some national and local training initiatives that we reviewed--both 
those for the employed and those for the unemployed--have shown 
promise, although some have not been subject to an evaluation. For 
example, an evaluation of the precursor to the UK's national Train to 
Gain program found that 8 out of 10 participants believed they had 
learned new skills, and employers and participants both felt that the 
training enabled participants to perform better at work. However, the 
evaluation estimated that only 10-15 percent of the training was new 
training, while the remaining 85-90 percent of the training would have 
occurred without the program. Although a planned evaluation has not yet 
been conducted, an individual UK employer reported that it trained 43 
women for jobs in which they are underrepresented. Fourteen of these 
women found employment and 29 are in further training. Those in further 
training report that they are more confident that they can find a job, 
and some are actively seeking employment, according to the employer. 
Further, 10 out of 70 women began their own business after completing a 
program in the Netherlands that provides women on social assistance 
with training to become entrepreneurs, according to the program 
provider. 

Even where evaluations do exist, it is difficult to determine the 
effects of any policy for a variety of reasons. Research indicates that 
policies that appear to increase female labor force participation also 
interact with cultural factors, such as a country's ideology concerning 
social rights and gender equality, according to a researcher from 
Ireland. In some cases, too, new policies interact with the effects of 
existing ones. For example, a researcher reported that the French 
government provides payments to mothers who may choose to stay home 
with their children, while also subsidizing childcare that encourages 
mothers to work. Additionally, changes in the labor market may actually 
bring about the enactment of policies, rather than the other way 
around. For example, it is difficult to be sure whether the 
availability of childcare causes women to enter the labor force or if 
it is an effect of having more women in the workforce, according to one 
researcher's review of the relevant literature. Several of the studies 
we reviewed attempt to correct for these factors, but a researcher 
stated that it is difficult to determine cause and effect with 
certainty even with the best of studies. 

Further, few evaluations of certain policies and practices have been 
conducted. According to both a European Commission report and a study 
by the Canadian government, the majority of training evaluations come 
from Canada and the United States, where such studies are often 
mandated.[Footnote 37] Evaluations are conducted less frequently in 
Europe although, according to the European Commission, this is starting 
to change. Moreover, some policies were recently developed, and 
governments frequently make changes to existing policies, a fact that 
may make it difficult to evaluate them. For example, a report by the 
Canadian government states that flexible work arrangements are 
relatively new and represent an area in which research is needed. In 
other cases, a policy simply codified into law a widely used practice. 
For example, a government official in the Netherlands reported that it 
was very common for Dutch women to choose to work part-time even before 
legislation passed that promoted employees' right to reduce their 
working hours. 

While Several Factors Affect Uptake, Employees' Use of Workplace 
Benefits Can Have Implications for Employers and Employees: 

The experiences of the countries we reviewed have shown that 
characteristics of policies, such as the level of payment during leave, 
can affect whether an employee uses various workplace benefits. For 
example, the province of Saskatchewan in Canada provides 12 days of 
unpaid leave per year, for time away from work to deal with emergencies 
or sickness.[Footnote 38] However, according to a Saskatchewan 
government official, low-wage workers cannot always afford to take the 
unpaid leave. Similarly, according to a University of Bristol 
professor, low-income mothers in the UK disproportionately return to 
the workforce at the end of paid maternity leave, whereas more affluent 
mothers tend to return at the end of unpaid leave. The level of payment 
can also affect the likelihood that men are willing to take leave, 
thereby allowing women to shorten their leave and return to work if 
they choose to do so. A review of the literature from European 
countries demonstrates that men are much more likely to take leave when 
they receive a high percentage of their wages.[Footnote 39] When 
parental leave can be shared between parents and the level of payment 
is low, women tend to take the leave, in part because their income 
level is often lower than their husband's. The review also found that 
men are more likely to take parental leave when it reserves a period of 
time exclusively for their use, and does not allow that time to be 
transferred to the mother. A report from the European Commission also 
found that the ability to use leave flexibly, such as for a few hours 
each day or over several distinct periods rather than all at once, can 
also increase parents' take-up rates for leave as parents are able to 
care for their children and stay in the labor force at the same time. 

Employer views and employee perceptions on workplace benefits, such as 
leave and training, can also directly affect an employee's use of them. 
According to researchers in Canada, flexibility in the workplace is 
determined more by individual managers and workplace culture than by 
whether specific policies exist. Their research found, for example, 
that the ability to arrange a schedule in advance and interrupt it if 
needed is very important to employees, but that this ability is not 
necessarily associated with express policy. What matters most, rather, 
is who an employee reports to and how willing a supervisor is to be 
flexible. Research from the European Commission also indicates that an 
organization's culture can determine whether or not parents take leave 
and that both women and men may face unsupportive workplaces. For 
example, according to the report, men may face negative attitudes from 
employers when wishing to take family leave. In addition, a review of a 
UK training program that offered free or subsidized training and wage 
subsidies to employers for the time employees spent in training found 
that small employers were generally less positive than larger ones 
about the value of training for employees.[Footnote 40] According to a 
UK employee representative, despite the program's benefits, many small 
employers did not participate, as they either did not see a need for 
training or feared losing staff if they acquired new skills. University 
researchers in Denmark expressed similar concerns, stating that 
companies face risks in providing training to increase the skills of 
their employees as employees with additional skills may leave. Further, 
according to a university researcher in Canada, employer-supported 
training tends to be provided to the higher-skilled and educated, and 
the low-skilled may have limited opportunity to improve. A cross- 
national study from the OECD, which included the countries we reviewed, 
found that many employers tend to view training for the low-skilled as 
a cost, rather than an investment, and devote substantially more 
resources to their high-skilled workers, on average. In addition, an 
employee's perceptions on training can also affect his or her uptake of 
opportunities. For example, employee representatives from Denmark's 
largest trade union confederation said that low-skilled employees are 
more likely to have had negative experiences with education and that 
these experiences can affect whether they take advantage of workplace 
training opportunities to increase their skills. 

Employees' use of workplace benefits can create management challenges 
for their employers. For example, an employer in Saskatchewan reported 
that covering for the work of staff on family leave can be complicated. 
He said that although he was able to hire temporary help to cover an 
employee on maternity leave, he faced an unexpected staff shortage when 
the employee decided toward the end of her leave not to return to work 
and the temporary employee had found another job. In addition, a 
university in the UK reported difficulties in managing employees' 
leave, as many of the organization's research projects are externally 
funded and do not provide extra funds to cover for employees on 
maternity leave. She added that finding a suitable replacement for 
employees that are specialized also poses problems. An official 
affiliated with the largest employer association in the Netherlands 
stated that it can be hard to organize work processes around employees' 
work interruptions, especially during short-term and unplanned leaves. 
Similarly, university researchers in Denmark reported that coordinating 
arrangements during an employee's absence, including during training, 
may be problematic for small employers. 

The use of family leave or part-time work schedules may have negative 
implications for an employee's career. Employers have indicated that 
they would prefer to hire an older woman with children rather than a 
younger woman who has yet to have children, according to university 
researchers in Denmark.[Footnote 41] In addition, long parental leaves 
may lead to an actual or perceived deterioration in women's labor 
market skills, according to an EU report, and can have negative effects 
on future earnings. According to employee representatives in Canada, in 
the high-tech sector, where there are rapid changes in technology, the 
use of parental leave can be particularly damaging. According to a 
university employer in the UK, women who choose part-time work may find 
that they continue to work full-time schedules due to the demanding 
nature of their chosen field, even though they receive part-time wages. 
In addition, some part-time jobs have no career advancement 
opportunities and limited access to other benefits, such as payment 
during leave and training. Since employers tend to target their 
training to higher-skilled and full-time workers, employees who opt to 
work part-time may have fewer opportunities for on-the-job training 
that could help them advance, according to university researchers in 
the Netherlands. 

Concluding Observations: 

Workplace policies and practices of the countries we studied generally 
reflect cooperation among government, employer, and employee 
organizations. Many developed countries have implemented policies and 
practices that help workers enter and remain in the workforce at 
different phases of their working lives. These policies and practices, 
which have included family leave and childcare, for example, have been 
adopted through legislation, negotiated by employee groups, and, at 
times, independently initiated by private industry groups or individual 
employers. 

U.S. government and businesses, recognizing a growing demand for 
workplace training and flexibility, also offer benefits and are seeking 
ways to address these issues to recruit and retain workers. Potentially 
increasing women's labor force participation by further facilitating a 
balance of work and family, and improving the skills of low-wage 
workers throughout their career, may be important in helping the United 
States maintain the size and productivity of its labor force in the 
future, given impending retirements. While other countries have a 
broader range of workplace benefits and flexibility and training 
initiatives, little is known about the effects of these strategies. 
Whether the labor force participation gains and any other positive 
outcomes from adopting other countries' policies would be realized in 
the United States is unknown. Moreover, any benefits that might come 
from any initiatives must be weighed against their associated costs. 
Nonetheless, investigating particular features of such policies and 
practices in some of the developed countries may provide useful 
information as all countries address similar issues. 

Agency Comments: 

We provided a draft of this report to the Departments of Labor and 
State for review and comment. The Department of Labor provided 
technical comments on the draft report, which we have incorporated 
where appropriate. The Department of State did not have comments on 
this report. 

We are sending copies of this report to the Secretary of Labor, the 
Secretary of State, appropriate congressional committees, and other 
interested parties. In addition, the report will be available at no 
charge on GAO's Web site at http://www.gao.gov. 

A list of related GAO products is included at the end of the report. If 
you or your staff have any questions about this report, please contact 
me at (202) 512-7215. You may also reach me by e-mail at 
nilsens@gao.gov. Contact points for our Offices of Congressional 
Relations and Public Affairs may be found on the last page of this 
report. Key contributors to this report are listed in appendix IV. 

Signed by: 

Sigurd R. Nilsen: 
Director, Education, Workforce, And Income Security Issues: 

[End of section] 

Appendix I: Objectives, Scope and Methodology: 

To describe the policies and practices implemented in other developed 
countries that may help women and low-wage/low-skilled workers enter 
and remain in the labor force, and to identify the factors that 
affected employees' use of workplace benefits and the resulting 
workplace implications, we conducted site visits or in-depth interviews 
with various officials in four developed countries--Canada, the United 
Kingdom (UK), the Netherlands, and Denmark. We selected Canada because 
of its limited government role in the economy, and the UK to compare 
policies with a European country that has a preference for a limited 
government intervention in labor markets, and because it recently 
implemented a law that encourages flexible work schedules. We selected 
the Netherlands as it has a higher proportion of part-time workers than 
any other country in Europe and has an extensive workforce development 
system. We selected Denmark because it has had work-family policies in 
place for more than 30 years, has a goal of gender-equitable labor 
force participation, and provides extensive training programs. We 
interviewed government officials, researchers, private employers, and 
trade associations or unions in each of the countries about their 
experiences with such policies and practices. We also visited Belgium 
to meet with officials from several European Union (EU) institutions, 
such as the European Commission and the European Foundation for the 
Improvement of Living and Working Conditions--organizations that 
provided a broader Europe-wide perspective on the selected policies and 
practices and current political environment across countries. 

To examine the change in the targeted groups' employment following the 
implementation of the policies and practices, as well as to identify 
the factors that affected employees' use of workplace benefits and the 
resulting workplace implications, we conducted an extensive literature 
review of workforce flexibility and training strategies in a range of 
developed countries. Our literature reviews focused on cross-national 
studies that examined our selected countries. To identify relevant 
studies for our research, we conducted database searches, spoke with 
U.S. and international academics, and spoke with knowledgeable U.S. 
agency officials. We selected studies that had been conducted within 
the past 10 years, studies that included at least three of our selected 
countries, and studies that we determined were methodologically sound. 
Our review of these studies was limited to the extent that they were 
available in English. These reviews provided information on the 
policies and practices in use, their target population and purpose, 
related laws and regulations, and any changes in employment following 
the implementation of the policies and practices. Additionally, we 
reviewed research reports from the Organisation for Economic Co- 
operation and Development (OECD) and the European Commission (EC). 

We reviewed four other countries based on policies and practices they 
had implemented for our target groups. Information about these 
countries' policies/practices came from extensive literature reviews 
and discussions with U.S. and foreign-based researchers. The selected 
countries were Ireland, which has experienced a large decline in 
unemployment and low-paid work in the last decade and has a flexible 
labor market; France, which supports women's employment in part through 
universal childcare; Sweden, which has had work-family policies in 
place for more than 30 years; and New Zealand, which implemented 
legislation mandating that all employers provide a minimum number of 
paid sick days to workers as well as legislation mandating paid 
parental leave for certain employees. 

To provide context, we identified relevant national policies in the 
United States. However, we did not conduct a comprehensive review of 
similar workplace flexibility and training strategies in the United 
States, nor did we seek to determine whether other countries' 
strategies could be implemented in the United States. 

Additionally, our review of related laws and regulations of other 
countries relied on secondary sources of analysis rather than 
independent analysis of foreign laws. Our review of the laws and 
regulations was limited by the extent that specific information from 
secondary sources was accessible and written in English. 

[End of section] 

Appendix II: Selected Labor Market Statistics: 

Table 4: Educational Attainment Ages 25-64, 2004: 

Country: Canada; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 13.2; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 13.2; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 13.3; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 45. 

Country: The U.S; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 13.3; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 13.2; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 13.4; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 39. 

Country: Sweden; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 12.6; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 12.4; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 12.8; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 35. 

Country: Denmark; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 13.4; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 13.5; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 13.3; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 32. 

Country: The Netherlands; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 11.2; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 11.4; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 11.1; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 29. 

Country: Ireland; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 13.0; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 12.9; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 13.1; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 28. 

Country: The UK; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 12.6; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 12.7; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 12.4; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 26. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 12.6; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 12.6; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 12.6; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 25. 

Country: France; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 11.6; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 11.7; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 11.4; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 24. 

Country: OECD Average; 
Average number of years in formal education: Total: 11.9; 
Average number of years in formal education: Men: 11.9; 
Average number of years in formal education: Women: 11.8; 
Percentage of population with a postsecondary education[A]: Total: 25. 

Source: Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators 2006 (OECD, 2006). 

[A] Postsecondary education, often referred to internationally as 
tertiary education, includes undergraduate and postgraduate education, 
as well as vocational education and training. 

Note: Educational attainment in these countries will vary by age group, 
i.e., whether individuals are 25-34, 35-44, 45-54, or 55-64. 

[End of table] 

Table 5: Percentage of Full-time Workers Earning Less than Two-Thirds 
of the Median Wage of Full-time Workers: 

Country: The UK; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 19.5;
Year: 2003-2004[A]: 23.4. 

Country: The U.S; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 25.1; 
Year: 2003-2004[A]: 23.3. 

Country: Canada; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 22.3; 
Year: 2003-2004[A]: 22.3. 

Country: The Netherlands; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 11; 
Year: 2003-2004[A]: 16.6. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 14.5; 
Year: 2003-2004[A]: 14.7. 

Country: France; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 13.9; 
Year: 2003-2004[A]: 14.0. 

Country: Ireland; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 23.5; 
Year: 2003-2004[A]: 13.7. 

Country: Denmark; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 7.3; 
Year: 2003-2004[A]: 9.3. 

Country: Sweden; 
Year: Mid-1990s: 5.7; Year: 2003-2004[A]: 6.4. 

Source: OECD data, Hyperlink, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/184587347336. 

[A] Data for France are for 2001. 

[End of table] 

Table 6: Public Expenditures on Training Programs: 

Country: Denmark; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.54. 

Country: The Netherlands; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.36. 

Country: Sweden; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.35. 

Country: France; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.31. 

Country: Ireland; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.18. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.18. 

Country: The UK; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.13. 

Country: Canada; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.12. 

Country: The U.S; 
Public expenditures on training as a percentage of GDP, 2003-2004: 
0.05. 

Source: OECD Employment Outlook 2006: Boosting Jobs and Income (OECD, 
2006). 

Note: The expenditures on training include those for institutional 
training, workplace training, integrated training, and special support 
for apprenticeship programs. 

[End of table] 

Table 7: Gross National Income, Per Capita, 2005: 

Country: The U.S; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $42,000. 

Country: Denmark; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $34,030. 

Country: The UK; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $33,960. 

Country: The Netherlands; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $32,970. 

Country: Canada; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $32,770. 

Country: Ireland; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $32,580. 

Country: Sweden; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $32,440. 

Country: France; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $30,540. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Gross national income per capita, purchasing power parity 
(international dollars): $25,450. 

Source: World Development Indicators Database, World Bank, Purchasing 
Power Parity (international dollars), 2007. 

Note: Purchasing power parity (PPP) conversion factors take into 
account differences in the relative prices of goods and services and 
therefore provide a better overall measure of the real value of output 
produced by an economy compared to other economies. Because PPPs 
provide a better measure of the standard of living of residents of an 
economy than other measures, such as the Atlas method, they are the 
basis for the World Bank's calculations of poverty rates. 

[End of table] 

[End of section] 

Appendix III: Maternity, Paternity, and Parental Leave Provisions: 

Table 8: Maternity Leave: 

Country: Canada; 
Length of leave: Length of leave for private employers governed by the 
provinces, which generally allow 17 weeks of unpaid leave; 
Eligibility: Must generally have worked for the same employer for a 
continuous period that ranges from 13 weeks to 12 months. However, 
three provinces do not have this requirement; 
Payment: Payment of 55 percent of average insured earnings, up to 
yearly maximum earnings of $40,000, is available for a maximum of 15 
weeks for women who have worked for at least 600 insured hours in the 
last year. Payment can begin up to 8 weeks prior to the expected birth; 
Conditions: 2-week waiting period prior to receiving payment. 

Country: Denmark; 
Length of leave: 18 weeks; 
Eligibility: Must have been employed for at least 120 hours in the 13 
weeks prior to the leave. Women who are self-employed, have completed 
vocational training for a period of at least 18 months, are doing paid 
work placement as part of a vocational training course, or are 
unemployed are also entitled to cash benefits; 
Payment: Based on the hourly wage of the employee, up to a maximum. In 
2003, on average, the compensation rate was 60-70 percent of former 
earnings; 
Conditions: Leave includes 4 weeks before the expected date of 
confinement and 14 weeks following confinement. 

Country: France; 
Length of leave: 16 weeks of maternity leave for a woman's first child, 
and 26 weeks for subsequent children; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: Generally paid at full earnings for women with a minimum level 
of social insurance contributions or hours worked; 
Conditions: [Empty]. 

Country: Ireland; 
Length of leave: 26 weeks of maternity leave, and 16 weeks of unpaid 
maternity leave; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: Generally paid at 80 percent of earnings, subject to a minimum 
and maximum payment, for women with a minimum level of social insurance 
contributions; 
Conditions: [Empty]. 

Country: The Netherlands; 
Length of leave: 16 weeks; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: 100 percent of the daily wage, up to a maximum, which is paid 
by the general unemployment fund; 
Conditions: Leave generally begins 6 weeks prior to the expected date 
of birth. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Length of leave: 14 weeks; 
Eligibility: Unpaid leave for 14 continuous weeks is available to women 
who do not meet minimum work eligibility requirements; 
Payment: 100 percent of weekly pay, up to a maximum, is available to 
women who have worked at least 10 hours per week in the 6 or 12 months 
preceding baby's expected date of birth; 
Conditions: Paid leave by women must be taken at the same time as 
unpaid leave for which they are eligible. If a woman's spouse of 
partner meets the eligibility criteria, the mother can transfer all or 
a part of this leave to them. 

Country: Sweden; 
Length of leave: 12 weeks; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: 80 percent of earnings; 
Conditions: Leave is for 6 weeks before and 6 weeks following the birth 
of a child. 

Country: UK; 
Length of leave: 52 weeks; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: 90 percent or less of weekly average earnings is available for 
39 weeks to women whose earnings qualify for the national insurance 
program and who have worked for the same employer continuously for 26 
weeks prior to the 15th week before the child is due. Women who do not 
meet these requirements may receive payment of 90 percent or less of 
earnings for 39 weeks through a maternity allowance; 
Conditions: Payment period for statutory maternity pay/allowance is 39 
weeks. 

Country: U.S; 
Length of leave: 12 weeks; 
Eligibility: Must have worked for employer for at least 1 year, and for 
over 1,250 hours during the last year; 
Payment: Unpaid; 
Conditions: Allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of job-
protected leave in a 12-month period for qualifying reasons, including 
the birth or placement of a child for adoption or foster care, the 
employee's own serious health condition, or to care for a qualifying 
family member with a serious health condition. Leave for the birth or 
placement of a child must conclude within 12 months of the birth or 
placement. 

Source: GAO analysis of OECD, European Commission, and government and 
related Web sites: 

Note: We were unable to identify all recent or available information 
for each of the countries we examined. 

[End of table] 

Table 9: Paternity Leave: 

Country: Canada; 
Length of leave: See table 10 on parental leave as paternity leave was 
largely replaced by this leave in the 1990s; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: [Empty]; 
Conditions: [Empty]. 

Country: Denmark; 
Length of leave: 2 weeks; 
Eligibility: Employed or self-employed; 
Payment: In 2003, on average, the compensation rate was 60-70 percent 
of former earnings; 
Conditions: Must be taken continuously within 14 weeks following the 
birth. 

Country: France; 
Length of leave: 11 days, or 18 days, in the case of a multiple birth; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: Generally paid at full earnings for fathers with a minimum 
level of social insurance contributions or hours worked; 
Conditions: Must be taken continuously. 

Country: Ireland; 
Length of leave: No legal entitlement to paternity leave; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: [Empty]; 
Conditions: [Empty]. 

Country: The Netherlands; 
Length of leave: 2 days; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: Employer pays 100 percent of wages; 
Conditions: [Empty]. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Length of leave: 1 or 2 weeks; 
Eligibility: One week unpaid leave is available to partners with 6 
months of eligible service and two weeks unpaid is available to those 
with 12 months of eligible service; 
Payment: Unpaid; 
Conditions: [Empty]. 

Country: Sweden; 
Length of leave: 10 working days; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: Paid at 80 percent of earnings; 
Conditions: [Empty]. 

Country: UK; 
Length of leave: 1 or 2 weeks; 
Eligibility: Must have worked for the same employer continuously for 26 
weeks prior to the 15th week before the child is due; 
Payment: 90 percent or less of average weekly earnings for those who 
qualify for the national insurance program. Those who do not qualify 
based on earnings may be eligible for other income support; 
Conditions: Leave must be completed within 56 days after the child's 
birth. 

Country: U.S; 
Length of leave: As with maternity leave, the Family and Medical Leave 
Act (FMLA) provides 12 weeks; 
Eligibility: Must have worked for employer for at least one year, and 
for over 1,250 hours during the last year; 
Payment: Unpaid; 
Conditions: Allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of job-
protected leave in a 12-month period for qualifying reasons, including 
the birth or placement of a child for adoption or foster care, the 
employee's own serious health condition, or to care for a qualifying 
family member with a serious health condition. Leave for the birth or 
placement of a child must conclude within 12 months of the birth or 
placement. 

Source: GAO analysis of OECD, European Commission, and government and 
related Web sites: 

Note: We were unable to identify all recent or available information 
for each of the countries we examined. 

[End of table] 

Table 10: Parental Leave: 

Country: Canada; 
Length of leave: Duration of leave ranges from 35 to 52 weeks, and is 
determined by the province; 
Eligibility: Must generally have worked for the same employer for a 
continuous period that ranges from 13 weeks to 12 months. However, 
three provinces do not have this requirement; 
Payment: Payment of 55 percent of average insured earnings, up to 
yearly maximum earnings of $40,000, is available for a maximum of 35 
weeks for parents with at least 600 insured hours in the last year; 
Conditions: 2-week waiting period prior to receiving payment; Benefits 
can be claimed by one parent or shared between the two, but cannot 
exceed a combined maximum of 35 weeks; When combined with maternity 
benefits, payment is available for up to 50 weeks. 

Country: Denmark; 
Length of leave: 32, 40, or 46 weeks; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: 60 percent of a worker's unemployment benefit, as reported in 
2003; 
Conditions: After the 14th week following the birth of a child, parents 
share this leave, which can be split or postponed, until the child 
turns 9. If parents choose the 40-or 46-week leave, their benefits are 
frozen to the amount paid for the 32-week leave. 

Country: France; 
Length of leave: Family entitlement to leave until a child reaches 36 
months; 
Eligibility: Eligible for payment with two children if parents have 
worked for at least 2 of 5 years preceding birth; eligible for payment 
for three or more children if parents have worked for 2 years at any 
time in the 10 preceding birth; 
Payment: Flat-rate benefit payment within 6 months of maternity leave 
for one child, or immediately for 2 or more children; 
Conditions: Leave can be taken by the mother or father, or can be 
shared following one another. 

Country: Ireland; 
Length of leave: 14 weeks; 
Eligibility: Generally must have been working for employer for one 
year; 
Payment: Unpaid; 
Conditions: Both parents have a separate entitlement to 14 weeks of 
leave, which may be used until the child turns 8, and can be taken 
continuously or in separate blocks; If the child has a disability, the 
14 weeks of leave can be used until the child has reached age 16. 

Country: The Netherlands; 
Length of leave: Amount of leave is based on working hours and is 
calculated on a part-time basis over 13 weeks; 
Eligibility: Must have worked for the same employer for at least one 
year; 
Payment: Unpaid; 
Conditions: Must be used before a child turns 8. With agreement from an 
employer, the leave can be split into a maximum of three parts. 

Country: New Zealand; 
Length of leave: 52 weeks, less any maternity leave (maximum of 14 
weeks); 
Eligibility: Must have worked for the same employer for a minimum of 12 
months; 
Payment: Unpaid, less any paid maternity leave (maximum of 14 weeks); 
Conditions: Leave can be taken simultaneously or consecutively and can 
be shared between parents where they are both eligible. 

Country: Sweden; 
Length of leave: 480 days per family; 
Eligibility: [Empty]; 
Payment: For 390 days, 80 percent of previous income, up to a maximum, 
and a fixed daily rate for the remaining 90 days. Parents who were not 
employed before the birth of a child receive a flat daily rate for 390 
days followed by a lesser amount for the remaining 90; 
Conditions: Of the 480 days, 60 days are set aside exclusively for each 
parent, and cannot be transferred while the remaining days can be 
shared; Paid leave must be taken before a child turns 8 and can be 
taken continuously or in blocks. 

Country: UK; 
Length of leave: 13 weeks, or 18 weeks for parents of children with 
disabilities; 
Eligibility: Must have completed a year of continuous service with 
current employer; 
Payment: Unpaid; 
Conditions: Leave can be taken until the child turns 5 and in short or 
long blocks, with the consent of an employer. 

Country: U.S; 
Length of leave: As with maternity leave, the Family and Medical Leave 
Act (FMLA) provides 12 weeks; 
Eligibility: Must have worked for employer for at least 1 year, and for 
over 1,250 hours during the last year; 
Payment: Unpaid; 
Conditions: Allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of job-
protected leave in a 12-month period for qualifying reasons, including 
the birth or placement of a child for adoption or foster care, the 
employee's own serious health condition, or to care for a qualifying 
family member with a serious health condition. Leave for the birth or 
placement of a child must conclude within 12 months of the birth or 
placement. 

Source: GAO analysis of OECD, European Commission, and government and 
related Web sites: 

Note: We were unable to identify all recent or available information 
for each of the countries we examined. 

[End of table] 

[End of section] 

Appendix IV: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments: 

GAO Contact: 

Sigurd R. Nilsen, Director, 202-512-7215, nilsens@gao.gov: 

Acknowledgments: 

Diana Pietrowiak, Assistant Director; Gretta L. Goodwin, Senior 
Economist; Avani Locke, Senior Analyst; and Seyda Wentworth, Senior 
Economist made significant contributions to all phases of this report. 
Stephanie Toby, Analyst, made significant contributions to data 
collection, data analysis, and message and report development. Sheila 
R. McCoy provided legal assistance; Gregory Wilmoth provided 
methodological assistance; and Charles Willson, Communications Analyst, 
assisted with report development. 

[End of section] 

Related GAO Products: 

An Assessment of Dependent Care Needs of Federal Workers Using the 
Office of Personnel Management's Survey. GAO-07-437R. Washington, D.C.: 
March 30, 2007. 

Highlights of a GAO Forum: Engaging and Retaining Older Workers. GAO- 
07-438SP. Washington, D.C.: February 2007. 

Workforce Investment Act: Employers Found One-Stops Centers Useful in 
Hiring Low-Skilled Workers; Performance Information Could Help Gauge 
Employer Involvement. GAO-07-167. Washington, D.C.: December 22, 2006. 

Employee Compensation: Employer Spending on Benefits Has Grown Faster 
Than Wages, Due Largely to Rising Costs for Health Insurance and 
Retirement Benefits. GAO-06-285. Washington, D.C.: February 24, 2006. 

Social Security Reform: Other Countries' Experiences Provide Lessons 
for the United States. GAO-06-126. Washington, D.C.: October 21, 2005. 

Child Care: Additional Information Is Needed on Working Families 
Receiving Subsidies. GAO-05-667. Washington, D.C.: June 29, 2005. 

Workforce Investment Act: Substantial Funds Are Used for Training, but 
Little is Known Nationally about Training Outcomes. GAO-05-650. 
Washington, D.C.: June 29, 2005. 

Highlights of a GAO Forum: Workforce Challenges and Opportunities for 
the 21st Century: Changing Labor Force Dynamics and the Role of 
Government Policies. GAO-04-845SP. Washington, D.C.: June 2004. 

Women's Earnings: Work Patterns Partially Explain Difference between 
Men's and Women's Earnings. GAO-04-35. Washington, D.C.: October 31, 
2003. 

Older Workers: Policies of Other Nations to Increase Labor Force 
Participation. GAO-03-307. Washington, D.C.: February 13, 2003. 

Older Workers: Demographic Trends Pose Challenges for Employers and 
Workers. GAO-02-85. Washington, D.C.: November 16, 2001. 

FOOTNOTES 

[1] For a listing of companies that have implemented various workplace 
flexibility initiatives, see the Families and Work Institute, 
www.familiesandwork.org, and the Great Place to Work Institute, 
www.greatplacetowork.com. 

[2] Part-time work schedules allow employees to reduce their work hours 
from the traditional 40 hours per week in exchange for a reduced salary 
and possibly pro rated benefits. Job sharing--a form of part-time work-
-allows two employees to share job responsibilities, salary, and 
benefits of one full-time position. 

[3] Paid leave had been the most costly benefit to employers, but by 
2005, the cost of health insurance equaled that of paid leave. See GAO, 
Employee Compensation: Employer Spending on Benefits Has Grown Faster 
than Wages, Due Largely to Rising Costs for Health Insurance and 
Retirement Benefits, GAO-06-285 (Washington, D.C.: Feb. 24, 2006). 

[4] However, employers are not required to extend this job protection 
to certain "highly compensated employees," as that term is defined by 
the Act, 29 U.S.C. § 2614(b). 

[5] Governmental agencies do not have to meet the 50-employee test. 

[6] See National Partnership for Women and Families, Expecting Better: 
A State-by-State Analysis of Parental Leave Programs (Washington, D.C.: 
2005), www.nationalpartnership.org. 

[7] The law was passed in September 2002 and became effective on 
January 1, 2004, with benefits payable for leave commencing on or after 
July 1, 2004. California's paid family leave is not a form of job 
protection. The program does not guarantee an employee the right to 
take leave, nor does it require an employer to hold an employee's job 
open while the employee is on leave. Paid leave can be taken all at one 
time, or intermittently--i.e., in hourly, daily, or weekly increments. 
While the previously existing State Disability Insurance benefit 
provides partial wage replacement to individuals who cannot work 
because of their own illness or injury, the new paid family leave 
benefit provides partial wage replacement to individuals who must take 
time off from work to care for a seriously ill family member or new 
child. Workers who take leave under the paid family leave program 
receive approximately 55 percent of their wages, subject to a statutory 
cap. Only workers who pay into the State Disability Insurance system-- 
i.e., almost all private sector employees and some public sector 
employees--are eligible for paid leave. The paid family leave law does 
not require an employee to work a minimum number of hours or days 
before becoming eligible for paid family leave benefits. 

[8] Beginning in October 2009, parents of newborn and newly adopted 
children who have worked 680 hours or more in the prior year will be 
able to take up to 5 weeks off work with a benefit of $250 per week, 
pro-rated for part-time workers. While the leave was initially funded 
through an employee-paid payroll tax, the bill that passed establishes 
a joint legislative task force to recommend, among other things, a 
funding source for the program before January 1, 2008. The Washington 
law does provide some employees who take leave with job protection. 

[9] The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) is administered by the 
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and provides block grants 
to states, which use the grants to subsidize the child care expenses of 
families with children under age 13, if the parents are working or in 
school and family income is less than 85 percent of the state median. 
Child care services are provided on a sliding fee scale basis, and 
parents may choose to receive assistance through vouchers or 
certificates, which can be used with a provider of the parents' choice, 
including religious providers and relatives. 

[10] To qualify, the spouse, children over the age of 13, and other 
dependents must be physically or mentally incapable of self-care and 
must have the same principal abode as the taxpayer for more than one- 
half of the taxable year. 

[11] GAO, Workforce Investment Act: Employers Found One-Stops Centers 
Useful in Hiring Low-Skilled Workers; Performance Information Could 
Help Gauge Employer Involvement, GAO-07-167 (Washington, D.C.: December 
2006). 

[12] These include Denmark, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden 
and the UK. The EU is an economic and political union established in 
1993 by the Maastricht Treaty to expand the scope of the European 
Economic Community and provide for the creation of a European Central 
Bank and the adoption of a common currency, the euro. 

[13] EC Council Directive 97/81/EC; members may choose to make 
exceptions for workers engaged in casual work. 

[14] Member states are bound by the objectives laid down by the 
directives but are left the choice of how to achieve these objectives. 

[15] The EU will allocate 0.9 billion euros, or more than $1 billion, 
for education and training in its 2007 budget, a 31 percent increase 
from 2006. 

[16] The ESF was created in 1957 and is EU's main source of support, 
helping member states combat unemployment, prevent people from dropping 
out of the labor market, and promote training. 

[17] The 8 percent mandatory contribution also funds other social 
benefits, including sick leave, active labor market policies, and 
retirement policies, according to a government official. 

[18] Persons who are self-employed, have completed vocational training 
for a period of 18 months, are doing paid work placement as part of a 
vocational training course, or are unemployed may also be eligible for 
cash benefits following the birth of a child. 

[19] The rate of statutory maternity pay is 90 percent of a woman's 
average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks, followed by the lesser 
of a flat rate, currently £108.85 a week, or 90 percent of her average 
weekly earnings for the remaining 33 weeks. Employers who are liable to 
pay statutory maternity pay may reclaim 92 percent of the amount they 
pay from Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. Statutory payment was 
extended in April 2007 from 26 to 39 weeks. 

[20] The definition was expanded in 2006 beyond those caring for 
parents, children, and spouses to include persons caring for other 
family members--such as siblings, grandparents, aunts, and uncles--and 
others considered like family members. Persons must be deemed at risk 
of dying within 26 weeks. 

[21] To be eligible, an employee must have worked for 6 months 
continuously for the same employer or be deemed eligible at the 
discretion of their employer. The leave may be used for an employee's 
own illness or can be used to care for a spouse or dependent, including 
a child or elderly parent. 

[22] The law is the Working Hours Adjustment Act of 2000. To be 
eligible for the Working Hours Adjustment Act of 2000, an employee must 
work in an organization with more than 10 workers, and must have been 
employed for at least a year by the time his/her work hours would be 
adjusted. 

[23] The Right to Request Flexible Working and Duty to Consider law, 
sometimes referred to as "soft touch," became effective in 2003. 
Eligible employees must also have worked for their employer 
continuously for 26 weeks at the time the application is submitted. 
Children have to be under 6 or have a disability. Adults must be a 
spouse, partner, civil partner, or relative, or live at the same 
residence as the employee submitting a request. 

[24] Janet C. Gornick and Marcia K. Meyers, "Support for Working 
Families: What the United States Can Learn from Europe" The American 
Prospect, (2001), 12:1. 

[25] The survey was commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Social 
Affairs and Employment. 

[26] A comprehensive review commissioned by the UK government showed 
that less than half of those with no qualifications are employed, 
compared to 90 percent of those with graduate-level qualifications. 
Such findings showed that skills across the UK lag behind those of its 
competitors, particularly with regard to basic and vocational skills. 
For example, more than one in three adults do not hold the equivalent 
of a basic school qualification, nearly one in two has difficulty with 
numbers, and one in seven is functionally illiterate. See Leitch Review 
of Skills: Prosperity for All in the Global Economy (HM Treasury, 
London: December 2006). 

[27] In addition to mandatory offers of education and training, for 
example, the Danish model known as 'flexicurity' includes a high degree 
of labor market flexibility and generous unemployment benefits. 

[28] The Essential Skills and Workplace Literacy Initiative was 
introduced in 2003. 

[29] See Leitch Review of Skills: Prosperity for All in the Global 
Economy (HM Treasury, London: December 2006). 

[30] European Commission, 'Making Work Pay' Debates from a Gender 
Perspective (Belgium: European Communities, 2006), 110. 

[31] Florence Jaumotte, "Female Labour Force Participation: Past Trends 
and Main Determinants in OECD Countries," OECD Economics Department 
Working Papers No. 376 (2003): 19. 

[32] Janet C. Gornick and Marcia K. Meyers, Families That Work: 
Policies for Reconciling Parenthood and Employment (New York: Russell 
Sage Foundation, 2003), 245. 

[33] This may overstate the increase in employment. In some cases, 
people on family leave are considered "employed but absent from work" 
and this may account for a quarter to one-half of the increase 
associated with longer lengths of leave (9 months or more). Christopher 
J. Ruhm, "The Economic Consequences of Parental Leave Mandates: Lessons 
from Europe," The Quarterly Journal of Economics. Vol. 113, No.1 
(1998): 311-312. 

[34] Elina Pylkkanen and Nina Smith, "Career Interruptions due to 
Parental Leave: A Comparative Study of Denmark and Sweden," OECD 
Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers No. 1 (2003): 30. 

[35] This is partly due to the fact that most studies evaluate all 
active labor market programs together, rather than single program 
types. These programs include not only skills and qualifications 
upgrades but also wage subsidized employment and practical work 
experiences in enterprises. In addition, all recipients of unemployment 
benefits in Denmark are required to participate in active labor market 
programs if they do not find employment within a certain time-frame, so 
there is no comparison group for formal evaluations. 

[36] Roopali Johri et al, Evidence to Date on the Working and 
Effectiveness of ALMPs in New Zealand (New Zealand Department of Labor 
and Ministry of Social Development, 2004), 15. 

[37] European Commission, Employment in Europe 2006 (Belgium: European 
Communities, 2006), 134; and Gender Equality in the Labor Market: 
Lessons Learned (Human Resources Social Development Canada, 2002), 22. 

[38] The provinces of British Columbia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and 
Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec also 
provide unpaid Family Responsibility Leave of varying lengths. 

[39] Janet C. Gornick and Marcia K. Meyers, "Supporting a Dual Earner/ 
Dual Carer Society: Lessons from Abroad," in A Democracy That Works: 
The Public Dimensions of the Work and Family Debate, edited by Jody 
Heymann and Christopher Beem, New York: the New Press (forthcoming). 

[40] Department for Education and Skills, "Employer Training Pilots: 
Final Evaluation Report," (2006). 

[41] According to government officials in Denmark, to counter gender 
discrimination, all private sector employers are required to contribute 
to a fund that pays for periods of leave on the basis of their number 
of employees, regardless of gender. 

GAO's Mission: 

The Government Accountability Office, the audit, evaluation and 
investigative arm of Congress, exists to support Congress in meeting 
its constitutional responsibilities and to help improve the performance 
and accountability of the federal government for the American people. 
GAO examines the use of public funds; evaluates federal programs and 
policies; and provides analyses, recommendations, and other assistance 
to help Congress make informed oversight, policy, and funding 
decisions. GAO's commitment to good government is reflected in its core 
values of accountability, integrity, and reliability. 

Obtaining Copies of GAO Reports and Testimony: 

The fastest and easiest way to obtain copies of GAO documents at no 
cost is through GAO's Web site (www.gao.gov). Each weekday, GAO posts 
newly released reports, testimony, and correspondence on its Web site. 
To have GAO e-mail you a list of newly posted products every afternoon, 
go to www.gao.gov and select "Subscribe to Updates." 

Order by Mail or Phone: 

The first copy of each printed report is free. Additional copies are $2 
each. A check or money order should be made out to the Superintendent 
of Documents. GAO also accepts VISA and Mastercard. Orders for 100 or 
more copies mailed to a single address are discounted 25 percent. 
Orders should be sent to: 

U.S. Government Accountability Office 441 G Street NW, Room LM 
Washington, D.C. 20548: 

To order by Phone: Voice: (202) 512-6000 TDD: (202) 512-2537 Fax: (202) 
512-6061: 

To Report Fraud, Waste, and Abuse in Federal Programs: 

Contact: 

Web site: www.gao.gov/fraudnet/fraudnet.htm E-mail: fraudnet@gao.gov 
Automated answering system: (800) 424-5454 or (202) 512-7470: 

Congressional Relations: 

Gloria Jarmon, Managing Director, JarmonG@gao.gov (202) 512-4400 U.S. 
Government Accountability Office, 441 G Street NW, Room 7125 
Washington, D.C. 20548: 

Public Affairs: 

Paul Anderson, Managing Director, AndersonP1@gao.gov (202) 512-4800 
U.S. Government Accountability Office, 441 G Street NW, Room 7149 
Washington, D.C. 20548: