Lyon's municipal council has voted to extend paternity leave for its employees to 10 weeks, making it the first city in France to do so.
Ten weeks of paternity leave is more than double the 28 days that have granted by law to second parents in France since July 2021.
Following the vote on Thursday, the measure will come into force from January 2024.
The environmentalist mayor of Lyon, Grégory Doucet, said: "Being able to share the burden seemed obvious to us."
The mayor said he hoped the change would contribute to equality between women and men.
He recognised that it represents an extra cost, "but for society to become more equal, the city of Lyon will assume responsibility", Doucet told FranceInfo.
Liam Puig – a technician for the council – said that he intends to take advantage of the new rules to help with his third child, expected in July.
"It's not a vacation. Dads actively share in daily tasks. It's a real support for mothers and they're really happy to have it," he told Franceinfo.
The other advantage, he said, is simply "enjoying the first days of the baby's life".
Progressive policies
The city of Lyon has already adopted several other progressive policies for its staff, including introducing menstrual leave, abortion leave and the option of a four-day working week.
Laurent Bosetti, who works as a human resources assistant for the council, told Franceinfo he hoped the latest initiative would be adopted elsewhere in France.
"It will perhaps make the law evolve too in a more meaningful way," he said.
Some private companies in France also offer more than the statutory paternity leave, from ten to fourteen weeks.
The online tech retailer LDLC, which is based in Lyon, grants 20 weeks to its employees.
Uptake lags
The legal minimum for maternity leave in France is 16 weeks, including four to six weeks to be taken before the birth.
Paternity or "second parent" leave was increased to 28 days in July 2021, compared to 14 previously, with the aim of encouraging fathers to take on more child care.
But that year only 65 percent of fathers said they took the full amount of paternity leave to which they were entitled under the new system, according to a study by the General Directorate of Administration and Civil Service.
France remains less generous than many of its neighbours.
In Sweden, parents share 480 days, of which three months are reserved for fathers. Meanwhile Spain has the most liberal policy in the EU, offering fathers 16 weeks – just over three and a half months.
(with newswires)
