Parental Leave Coverage: A Tale of Two Countries

Since we work with companies across both the U.S. and Canada, we’re often asked: Are the challenges with parental leave the same in both countries?

The short answer?
Some concerns are universal. Others are shaped by policy.

In Canada, where parental leave can last up to 18 months, we often hear concerns like:
🔹 Will I be permanently replaced or come back to a different role?
🔹 Will too much change while I’m away and I'll be forgotten?
🔹 Will I be seen as less committed if I take the full leave?

In the U.S., where leave is much shorter, the worry shifts to:
🔹 Will my workload just sit there until I return?
🔹 Will I be penalized for stepping away, even briefly?
🔹  Will I have flexibility to ease back in, especially with sleep deprivation, feeding schedules, or childcare uncertainty?

From a company’s perspective, the challenges are different too.

In Canada, longer leaves require finding interim support who can step in without creating confusion or competition. We also once spoke with an HR leader who had to cycle through three different backfills during one 18-month leave. If the ultimate goal is finding permanent work, your interim support is always going to be flight risk. Hardly ideal for anyone.

In the U.S., short leaves often don’t feel long enough to bring someone new on board or it’s challenging to attract someone with the right skillset that can hit the ground running. So companies ask existing teams to absorb the work, which leads to burnout, resentment, and talent risk.

What we’ve seen across both countries is this:
Even with the differences is approaches to job protection and paid leave, parental leave is still fundamentally treated like a disruption instead of a normal, manageable part of work life.

And that mindset is where many problems begin.

With the right planning and support, I’ve seen parental leaves strengthen teams and build trust. We work with companies to plan ahead, bring in experienced interim or fractional talent, and help make leaves smoother for everyone involved, whether the leave is three months or over a year.

If you’re planning a leave or supporting someone who is and want to talk through how to make it work better for everyone, we’d love to connect.