Maternity leave increased to 7 months, will it encourage childbirth?

Recently, the Ministry of Health continued to propose allowing female workers to take 7 months of maternity leave when giving birth to their second child instead of 6 months as at present to encourage people to have 2 children.

Is this policy feasible to encourage births in the context that Vietnam may face the risk of population "collapse"?

Previously, the Ministry of Health proposed not to discipline cases of having a third child or more, and the Politburo agreed. In addition, the health sector also suggested that couples be allowed to decide on the number of children they want. These urgent and continuous proposals show that the current population situation in Vietnam is at an alarming level, requiring effective and timely measures.

In 2024, Vietnam will have the lowest replacement fertility rate in history, reaching 1.91 children/woman. This is also the third consecutive year that the country's fertility rate is lower than the replacement fertility rate (2.1 children/woman). If the fertility rate continues to decrease in the coming time, our country will soon end its golden population period. This puts great pressure on the economy when there is a labor shortage.

In Hai Duong, although 2024 (the year of the Dragon) is considered lucky to have a child born in the year of the Dragon, the birth rate has also decreased. The number of births in the province is nearly 21,800, a decrease of more than 1,000 compared to 2023. In addition, the number of third and subsequent births is nearly 4,000, a decrease of 145. It is forecasted that by 2050, the province may enter a super-aged population phase.

Vietnam is a country that values ​​family culture, many people believe that "having more children is better than having more wealth"... However, some of the above figures demonstrate the changes in the perception of couples in choosing and deciding on the number of children. Under the pressure of work and economic conditions, the number of children in the family has gradually changed from natural to calculated and considered. Therefore, the addition of 1 month of maternity leave for female workers giving birth to a second child has also received a lot of concern and hesitation.

An additional month of maternity leave allows female workers to rest, recover after giving birth, and take better care of their children. However, the extension also causes female workers to face a number of problems such as difficulty in getting back to work, and additional financial burdens for the family.

On the other hand, some people want even longer maternity leave.

Therefore, the policy of increasing maternity leave for female workers giving birth to a second child is necessary but still not enough to encourage giving birth under many surrounding pressures.

For this policy to be effective, it must be placed in a binding relationship between related factors. For example, employers must facilitate female workers in implementing maternity regimes. Social welfare regimes must ensure, accompany and support families in raising and educating children. Or there must be housing infrastructure, kindergartens, health care... to meet the essential needs of couples who are workers far from home.

Recently, the Politburo decided to exempt tuition fees for students from kindergarten to high school, which will reduce the burden on parents. The combination of many beneficial policies will motivate couples to consider having more children.

Working with the Hai Duong health sector at the end of February 2025, Permanent Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen affirmed that the three pillars of health are prevention, treatment and population. In particular, population work must be given top priority because it directly affects socio-economic development and the fate of the country.

Although many couples are reluctant to have more children due to pressure, the two-child family model is still the dream of many couples. Therefore, policies to encourage births could be a "push" to solve the problem of low birth rates.