Should maternity leave really be extended?

The debate has existed for years: should we extend maternity leave? While for some people who have just given birth it is excruciating to return to work only a few weeks later, for others this return to activity can be beneficial.

But, even if maternity leave has a relatively short duration in France, should we really see it extended, as requested for example by this petition now on the National Assembly website?

Extension of maternity leave, for what?

In France currently, newly given births and employed people go back to work two and a half months — or 10 weeks — after the birth of the baby. This period is really quite short. In particular to separate the baby from its attachment figure, but also because, if there is breastfeeding, it is generally the moment when things fall into place and when the frequency of feedings reaches its cruising speed . Furthermore, after 10 weeks, the mother is generally still exhausted, as the birth is very fresh, not to mention the fact that the postpartum period can be very difficult to manage.

Finally, faced with the avalanche of complex and guilt-ridden arguments regarding mothers returning to work, such as ” will you leave it to a nanny/daycare that young? ” Where is it ” Aren’t you afraid I’ll forget you? ” as well as’ “A child needs his mother », many are those who leave to work with a suffering soul and a broken heart.

In reality, if the request for extension of maternity leave can start from a good intention, it is above all a headlong rush that would only reinforce the already existing inequalities.

Maternity leave should not be extended

In an ideal world where society is thought differently, the co-parent could have a real extended leave, which in this case would be really useful. If parental leave was adequately paid, if new ways of caring for children were created that would allow for a peaceful return to work, and if the mother was not “forced” to take parental leave due to lack of childcare (which happens regularly), if society as a whole were more attuned to mothers and parents, we wouldn’t be here.

Extended maternity leave might be a good thing for some, who thrive in this role and fully embrace it. For others, however, it could be a real psychological trap. The latter who find themselves alone at home with a child, the fatigue accumulating, alienated from the daily tasks and the mental burden that weighs down almost essentially on the mothers… Let us not forget that maternity leave has no “leave than the name, and let’s not forget that suicide is the second leading cause of death for new mothers in France.

Extension of motherhood, the debate is elsewhere

The debate should not, at this moment, be that of extending maternity leave, as it would imply that, once again, only mothers are responsible for the children that are born, and that they should have more time to raise them. He is elsewhere: we need a review of paternity leave and parental leave, a truly shared, fair and just leave, so that women are no longer the only ones confined to the house when the baby is born. Parental leave is to be completely reworked so that it can be flexibly adapted to the needs of the parents.

This petition which calls for the extension of maternity leave, although probably starting from a good intention, exerts further pressure on women, wanting to lock them up for further months in a role, a mission, which they could share equally.

Mothers should no longer be solely responsible for the household, their mental and physical health depends on it. In a society that is known to be patriarchal and that needs to change, it is essential that the relays offered to them, by the co-parent or by society, are concrete and lasting, and that a real review is urgently done. Stop putting everything on mothers shoulders, there’s no more room.

Photo credit image of one: Getty Images