It’s mad that it’s not equal, if mothers and fathers have equal childcare leave there’s no need to discriminate against hiring women full time (which is a thing that still happens, some companies don’t like to take women in their mind 20s full time cos they end up taking maternity, I saw this happen first hand while I was in RBS, that was only 2 jobs/a few years ago)
I live in a country where parental leave doesn’t discriminate between mothers and fathers (or one parent or another if it’s a same sex couple). Parental leave can be up to two years BUT it’s split into 75% for one parent, 25% for the other. I have yet to meet a man who has taken even a fraction of that 25% (aside from the paternal leave right after the baby is born, which is separate and covers a few weeks). This isn’t to say it’s an issue with men, but more an issue of a society that dissuades men from taking more than the bare minimum of parental leave, where women are still expected to take one the main caregiver role for children, and where men generally earn more than women. Until these issues are fixed and men are highly encouraged to take parental leave, just making that time available (even if a necessary first step) won’t be enough.
Edit: got my percentages wrong