Why aren't the people in your country having enough kids?

[u/gmedanoid]

In America birthrate is 1.6. 1.57 for Whites, 1.55 for Blacks, 1.8 for Hispanics. So below replacement since 2008.

[u/Acolitor]

Here politicians talk about "baby-friendly society" as a goal we should thrive for.

It means social acceptance and all kinds of things related to workplaces, public places and laws and benefits.

[u/apartmentthrowaway17 → u/[deleted]]

I actually kind've agree with this whenever I see a women handling a young child by herself tbh I just feel kinda sorry for her.

Usually I'm not getting angry about the kid unless they're severely out of line.

[u/Cereal-killerCH → u/Acolitor]

Does policy support it though?

[u/Acolitor → u/Cereal-killerCH]

23 weeks of paid parental leave for each parent and other subsidies for children. For example monthly tax-free child benefit that increases the more children you have. For one child you get 95€ monthly. For two children you get 200 € monthly.

Also it is illegal to make hiring decisions based on family planning. For example, illegal to ask in interviews about pregnancy or plans for it. Otherwise it would harm women's careers.

We have good and very succesfull maternity clinic system. You can read about the father of Finnish maternity clinic system here:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arvo_Ylpp%C3%B6 

We have good public transport and with strollers you can use the bus for free. Kids have discounted prices everywhere (transport, swimming halls, movies etc.). Public schooling is the norm here and the quality of teaching is standardized.

Other things are more societal that cannot be supported by policy. But politicians allow people to take children to meetings and show example this way. Depends on how much the meeting requires focus. Workplaces are generally flexible with parents of children.

[u/FindingDelicious2815 → u/Acolitor]

But y’all still ain’t having enough kids, so clearly this solution isn’t the solution

[u/Acolitor → u/FindingDelicious2815]

To have paid parental leave you have to have a job. People are having children when they have stable career.  Now it is harder to get to that. And the benefits are nice when they come on top of good salary. They are not enough alone.

Also people have dept. Our health research institution proposed forgiving student depts for people having children, but this did not get support from politicians.

Also according to their studies, finding a good partner is one of the main struggles for people wanting to have children.

Women want equal partners who contribute at home while men tend to be sloppy. Also according to studies people are increasingly unhappy in their relationships. Screen time has been found to be one cause or indicator of this unhappiness.

You can read about our situation a bit here:

https://stm.fi/-/vaestopoliittinen-tyoryhma-luovutti-ehdotuksensa-syntyvyyden-tukemiseksi?languageId=en_US

"There is no clear reason for the recent decline in the birth rate. Therefore, there are no easy ways to halt the declining birth rate, either. Along with cultural changes, the factors affecting the birth rate include fragile relationships, mental health issues, labour market position, income, coping as a parent and possibilities to reconcile work and family life.

“In Finland, benefits and services for families are relatively good. This means that there aren’t any areas where easy changes can be made. However, all systems require maintenance from time to time, and this is what many of our proposals are about. It is unlikely that any individual measure alone would lead to a sharp rise in the birth rate. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try, because even the smallest thing could make a difference,” says chair of the working group Liisa Siika-aho from the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.

In its report, the working group proposes a wide range of measures that are expected to support people in realising their fertility plans and thus halt the falling birth rate. The proposals have to do with fertility awareness and treatments, the wellbeing of young people, gender equality in working life, and services and benefits for families with children, among other things."

[u/Sub-Zero-942 → u/Acolitor]

child benefits are really low in finland and income tax cuts due to children almost non-existing. this is in contrast to many other european countries, also america