Parental leave: 136'000 signatures collected for the initiative

Context

In brief

• 136'000 signatures collected for the parental leave initiative
• Submission to the Federal Chancellery planned for next week
• 18 weeks for each parent during the first ten years
• The deadline for the 100'000 signatures expires on the first of October

Key facts

• Signatures → 136'000 signatures
• Submission → next week to the Federal Chancellery
• Duration → 18 weeks for each parent
• Funding → loss-of-earnings insurance
• Annual costs → approximately one billion francs

136'000 signatures have been collected for the popular initiative dedicated to parental leave. The Green Liberal Party (PVL), one of the forces promoting it, announced that the signatures would be submitted next week to the Federal Chancellery.

The text of the initiative, entitled «Strong society and economy thanks to parental leave», was published in the Federal Gazette in April 2025. The deadline for collecting the 100'000 required signatures expires on the first of October: the PVL announced that it had collected 136'000.

The proposed formula

The proposal calls for adequate and paid parental leave for mothers and fathers after the birth of a child. Funding would be provided through loss-of-earnings insurance.

The central rule concerns the first ten years: 18 weeks are provided for each parent. In principle, the leave should be taken one after the other. At most one quarter of the period could be taken simultaneously. One parent's share could not be transferred to the other.

The list of promoters includes, in addition to the PVL, the Greens, Alliance F, Travail Suisse and Women of the Centre. The initiative is also supported by the Social Democratic Party, the Evangelical People's Party and other organizations.

Regarding compensation, the allowance would be broadly aligned with those provided for military and civilian service. For lower salaries, it would amount to a full salary. In autumn 2024, National Councillor Kathrin Bertschy (PVL/BE), co-president of Alliance F, had estimated an increase in payroll contributions of 0.25 percentage points, to 0.75%. According to a study by Ecoplan, annual costs would amount to approximately one billion francs.

The current framework includes 14 weeks of maternity compensation for working mothers. In 2020, Swiss voters approved two weeks of paternity leave, introduced at the beginning of 2021. To follow the issue and distinguish the proposal from the rules already described, the dossier on congedo parentale brings together the main elements of the signature collection and the model indicated by the promoters.

Operational details

For families, the text compares the current situation with a model in which leave would be assigned to both parents. The change concerns the duration, the succession of periods, the portion that can be used at the same time, and the financing.

Time and organization

Today, working mothers have 14 weeks of maternity benefits, while paternity leave is two weeks and was introduced at the beginning of 2021 after popular approval in 2020. The proposal instead provides for 18 weeks for each parent during the first ten years after a child’s birth. The comparison is therefore between a right described separately for mother and father and a framework that assigns a period to both.

The text does not treat the two periods as a single family package. Each parent retains their own share and cannot transfer it to the other. As a rule, the leave should be taken one after the other; overlap would be permitted only up to one quarter of the period. In a hypothetical calendar, this means considering both the succession of the two leaves and the limit on simultaneous use. The stated principle is the succession of the periods, without transferring the share.

Income and financing

The second aspect concerns the allowance. The model would be broadly based on the allowances provided for military and civilian service. For lower salaries, the proposal specifies full pay. The rule therefore links the understanding of the leave not only to the number of weeks, but also to the level of coverage provided.

The financing would come through loss-of-earnings insurance. In autumn 2024, Kathrin Bertschy had estimated an increase in wage contributions of 0.25 percentage points, to 0.75%. This is an estimate associated with the proposal; in the same context, the Ecoplan study puts the annual costs at approximately one billion francs. The two figures describe different aspects: the first concerns wage contributions, while the second concerns the estimated annual expenditure.

For those who want to consider the possible impact on income without confusing the estimate with a rule that is already applicable, the useful reference is busta paga svizzera. The comparison remains tied to the parameters indicated: weeks, allowances, and wage contributions.

Recommended tools

For an updated estimate, use the net salary calculator and the CHF-EUR exchange comparator.

Key points

Following the initiative requires separating the signature-submission process from the rules contained in the text. The following sequence makes it possible to read the news with the available data and prepare an orderly comparison between the current situation and the proposal.

Five control steps

1. Verify the next step. The operational detail indicated is the submission of the signatures next week to the Federal Chancellery. This is the appointment to connect to the announcement of the 136'000 signatures collected by PVL and the other promoting forces.

2. Check the collection schedule. The text was published in the Federal Gazette in April 2025; the deadline for the 100'000 signatures required is set for the first of October. These are the temporal references to keep alongside the number announced.

3. Read the duration separately. The parameter to report in a family overview is 18 weeks for each parent during the first ten years. Alongside the duration, the text's two constraints must be noted: in principle, use one after the other and a maximum of one quarter taken simultaneously.

4. Verify transferability. The quota would not be transferable from one parent to the other. In the comparison, therefore, the two periods must be kept as separate allocations, without turning them into a single pool of weeks.

5. Separate the benefit from the cost. The allowance would be based on those of military and civilian service, with a full salary for lower earners. The financing is linked to loss-of-earnings insurance; the cited estimate mentions contributions of 0.75% and annual costs of approximately one billion francs.

The comparison to pursue

After these five steps, the comparison with the rules recalled in the news starts from two figures: 14 weeks of maternity benefits for working mothers and two weeks of paternity leave approved in 2020 and introduced at the beginning of 2021. Keeping them separate from the proposed 18 weeks prevents the model described by the initiative from being read as already available.

The sequence also helps avoid conflating the roles. PVL announced the submission, Kathrin Bertschy formulated the estimate on contributions in autumn 2024, and Ecoplan estimated the annual costs: these are three distinct references within the same news item. The reader can thus follow the institutional process, the structure of the leave and the economic aspect without adding figures different from those reported.

To explore the topic further and relate it to income, consult congedo parentale and use calcolatore stipendio.

Source: tio.ch