‘Reserved paternity leave in a political vacuum: A normative study of Danish gender equality politics based on the perspective of fathers’ rights’ can be downloaded here: Thesis

Summary: Equality in Denmark is a core value and Denmark is regarded as a country that both values and promotes gender equality. However, in terms of equality measurement, Denmark is rapidly dropping in global rankings as other Nordic countries introduce equality-promoting legislation, such as reserved paternity leave, while Denmark rests on its reputation. This presentation aims at identifying the factors that strive to explain why gender equality legislation, such as reserved paternity leave, has not been introduced in Denmark. Factors such as history, public discourse, cultural norms and political legislation will be explored as contributing factors. The outset being how gender equality legislation has historically been aimed at ensuring women’s rights and how this bias affects equality policy in a contemporary perspective, where the absence of focus on men and fathers’ rights is pronounced.