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演讲者：Shu Matsuo Post
演讲题目：Why paternity leave benefits everyone
I remember the day. My wife was three months pregnant, and I knew that I wanted to take time off. But when I walked in to ask my boss, I was so nervous. I was about to ask for seven months of paternity leave, and I just didn’t know how my boss would react to that.
我还记得那天。我太太怀孕3个月了，我知道我想请假。但是当我走去问我的老板时，我很紧张。我想请7个月的陪产假，而我不知道我的老板会作何反应。
[The Way We Work]
[我们革新之路]
Like most men in Japan, I grew up being told that masculinity is supposed to look a certain way. You’re supposed to be stoic and strong, dominant and in control; the breadwinner for your family. But when I met my wife, she challenged me on that. She pushed me on thinking that men should always pay for dates and assuming that women should always do the childcare.
就像大多数日本男性，我成长在一个总被告知你应该有“男子气概”的环境里。你应该坚忍而坚强，能支配和有控制权；你是家庭中养家糊口的那个人。但是当我遇到我的太太，她启发了我。她促使我去思考是不是总是应该由男人支付约会的费用，女性就应该承担育儿的工作。
Japan offers both mothers and fathers 12 months of paid parental leave. It’s been ranked number one in the world in terms of length and compensation for paternity leave. But here’s the crazy thing. In 2020, only about seven percent of fathers took it. And of that seven percent, three quarters took a leave of two weeks or less. With pressure at work, most Japanese men just aren’t at home during this pivotal time. And that’s a shame, because paternity leave -- it benefits everyone. Here is why normalizing it is so important.
日本提供父母双方12个月的带薪育儿假。从时长和育儿假的补偿方面，这是世界第一。但是讽刺的是，在2020年，只有大概7%的父亲休了陪产假。而在这7%里，75%的父亲只休了两周甚至更少的时间。由于工作压力，在这个关键时期，大多数日本男性并不在家。这是一种耻辱，但是育儿假，实际上对每个人都有好处。这就是让它常态化如此重要的原因。
I believe deeply in gender equality. I took my wife’s last name and even wrote a book about it, and still I was terrified asking for paternity leave. I'd heard of bosses denying the request or questioning their employees’ masculinity. I was scared that in asking for time off, I might be replaced or left behind. But my boss -- he accepted my request right away, which made me feel so valued, and he let me focus on what was important: my family.
我深信性别平等。婚后我用了我太太的姓，我甚至还写了本书。但是我仍然很害怕去要求陪产假。我听说过老板们拒绝的例子，或者质疑员工的男子气概。我很害怕去请假，我可能会被炒掉或者被边缘化，但是我的老板——他马上接受了我的申请，这让我觉得很受重视，他让我把注意力集中在重要的事情上：我的家庭。
I can’t describe how much joy I got seeing my newborn son each day. I especially loved my early morning shift with him so his mom could sleep in. When he was a newborn, we’d just cuddle on the couch, but when he got a little bigger, he became my best workout buddy as a cheerleader during my morning runs in his stroller or as a human dumbbell for squats and biceps curls.
当我每天能见到我刚出生的儿子时，我难以言表自己的喜悦。我特别喜欢跟他一起上早班，这样他的妈妈就能睡一觉。当他还是个新生儿时，我只是拥着他躺在沙发上，但当他大一些，他成了我最好的锻炼伙伴，当我推着他的推车晨跑，他是啦啦队长，我深蹲和练二头肌时，他是人形哑铃。
I feel so close to my son now. And it’s not just me. Men who take paternity leave experience a stronger bond with their babies. Research shows that the longer the paternity leave, the more engaged the father is in the first few years of a child’s life. I was shocked to learn that over half of all US fathers report feeling dissatisfied with the amount of time they spend with their children. Paternity leave is a chance to change that.
现在我感觉跟我的儿子特别亲密。这不仅只有我如此。休陪产假的父亲都会与他们的孩子建立更牢固的联系。研究发现，陪产假时间越长，在孩子生命的最初几年父亲的投入度越高。我很震惊地发现超过一半的美国父亲说，他们不满意跟孩子共处的时间长度。陪产假是一个改变这个的机会。
My relationship with my wife also deepened on my leave. We went on a walk together every day, and I became a better cook and cleaner because I was able to spend more time on household duties, which made her happy.
在我休假期间，我和我太太的关系更亲密了。我们每天一起散步，我成了一个更好的厨师和清洁工，因为我能花更多时间做家务，这让她很开心。
In a McKinsey and Company survey, 90 percent of fathers who took paternity leave said it improved their relationship, too. This happens along a few different dimensions. First, because you gain a whole new respect for what’s involved in childcare and housework, and it makes you step up and take on more. And by being home, you’re providing emotional support. Statistics show that when a mother’s partner is involved, especially in the first few weeks after birth, it reduces the risk of postpartum depression significantly.
在一项麦肯锡（McKinsey）的调查中，休过陪产假的父亲中，90%的人说，陪产假提升了与伴侣的关系。这发生在几个不同的维度。首先，因为你投入到育儿和家务你收获了新的尊重，这让你挺身而出并愿意承担更多。而且，当你在家，你能提供情感支持。数据显示当母亲的伴侣参与时，特别是在生产后的最初几周，能显著降低产后抑郁的风险。
But this is really just the start, because paternity leave is also good for business. Paternity leave can have a profound impact on gender equality in the workforce. There’s an inherent imbalance if women take childcare leave and men don’t. Working mothers are often juggling two full-time jobs: one at work and one at home.
但是这只是开始，因为陪产假对企业也有好处。陪产假能给工作场所的性别平等带来深远的影响，如果女性休产假而男性不休陪产假，这存在固有的不平衡。职场妈妈经常需要在两份全职工作之间奔波：一份在公司，一份在家里。
Many don't return to the workforce or decide to take reduced roles. By taking paternity leave, men can give women more options and even boost their ability to rise into leadership roles. A study in Sweden showed that for every month of parental leave taken by the father, the mother’s earnings increased by approximately seven percent.
很多职场妈妈生育后不再重返工作岗位，或者决定减少工作。通过休陪产假，男性能给女性更多的选择，甚至提升他们上升到领导角色的能力。瑞典的一项研究发现，父亲每多休一个月的陪产假，母亲的收入增长接近7%。
It’s interesting to note that 90 percent of female students in Japan say they’d want their future partner to take parental leave, and nearly 80 percent of men entering the workforce here -- and I suspect in other countries, too -- say they want to take paternity leave.
另一个有意思的数据是，在日本，90%的女性学生说，她们希望她们未来的另一半会休陪产假，我怀疑在其他国家80%的职场男性，也一样，会表示他们想要休陪产假。
For employers to have that open, inclusive culture where paternity leave is respected, that can help companies attract and retain the best talent. Workers are increasingly choosing the companies based on the culture. This is a space where any company can give themselves a boost.
对于雇主来说，这种尊重陪产假的开放、包容的文化能帮助公司吸引和留任更多的人才。求职者越来越多地选择基于这种文化的公司。这是一个任何公司都能自我推动的一个空间。
I’ve been back at my job for about three months now, and I can already tell you I feel so much more productive and very focused and always looking for ways to be more efficient so I can get home to my family. I’ve heard this from many mothers coming back from maternity leave too. And studies confirm: 80 percent of companies that offer paid family leave report a positive impact on morale, and 70 percent notice a boost in productivity. It’s a positive for any company, and that brings me to my final point.
我已经回来工作3个月了，我能告诉你们，我觉得我更有效率并且非常专注，而且总是去寻找让我更有效率的方式，这样我就能早点回家和家人一起。我从很多休完产假回来的妈妈那里也听说过这个。研究证实，80%提供带薪陪产假的公司，报告了陪产假对士气的正面的影响。70%的公司注意到工作效率的提升。这对任何公司都是正面的，这就引出了我的最后一点。
Paternity leave -- it’s good for society. Paternity leave is one of the big steps we can make in giving partners the opportunity to share the work both at home and at work. It’s one of our best bets to bridge the gender gap overall. Research shows that when that gender gap gets smaller, people report higher life satisfaction.
陪产假——对社会是好事。陪产假是我们所能采取的重大举措之一，在给予伴侣机会分享家庭和职场的工作方面。这是我们弥合性别差距的最好选择之一。研究表明，当性别差距变小时，人们有更高的生活满意度。
Iceland, Norway and Finland ranked top three in the Global Gender Gap Index, and over 70 percent of fathers take paternity leave. And if you take a look at their ranking in the World Happiness Report, they’re very, very high. This might be a coincidence, but ... I don’t think so. That freedom to be yourself and make choices without gender expectations, it feels really good.
冰岛、挪威和芬兰是全球性别差距指数排名里的前三。在这三个国家，70%以上的父亲会休陪产假，如果你看看世界幸福报告的排名，这些国家非常、非常高。这也许是个巧合，但是......我不这么认为。做自己的自由，不被性别期待的限制的选择的自由，真是太棒了。
We live in a patriarchy. And what I've realized is that the same world that systematically favors men, it's also trapping us in a cage. We need more countries to set up systems that allow all parents to take paid childcare leave to give everyone new options, we need to build a culture that encourages and values men as caretakers, because we can do it too.
我们生活在父权社会，而我也意识到而这个系统地偏袒男性的世界，也把我们困在笼子里。我们需要更多的国家来建立这个体制，让所有的父母能休带薪育儿假，为所有人提供休产假的选择，我们需要建立一种文化，鼓励并重视男性承担看护者的角色，因为我们也能做到。
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