Paid parental leave should be substantially boosted for fathers and partners, to support men to be more engaged in the early years of their children’s lives, according to this Grattan Institute report.

In this paper, the authors compare mothers’ preferred leave, anticipated leave, and realised leave to shed light on how well different types of mothers are able to predict the parental leave they will take, and the factors that drive them to deviate from their plans.

This report discusses recommendations for Australia to move to a model of gender equality for child-rearing, to replace the current parental leave system.

Advocacy group Parents At Work says Australia's approach to paid parental leave is lagging other nations and "requires an urgent rethink".

This report recommends that the Australian Government adopt a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, and has suggested ten clear areas where children would benefit from reform.