Family Policy
The Debate over Betreuungsgeld
Viewed narrowly, the passage of Betreuungsgeld demonstrated the power of a small but determined party in a coalition government; it is a bit harder to determine its meaning for German family policy more generally. Considering Germany’s belated commitment to making adequate numbers of child care places available, does Betreuungsgeld simply represent the dying gasp of a deeply conservative strand of German family policy, one that has sought to maintain a housewife role for women since the early days of the Federal Republic?
Die Betreuungsgeld-Debatte: Implications for Integration
On June 6, 2012, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cabinet approved a proposal that would issue financial support (a so-called Betreuungsgeld, or child care subsidy) to families who care for their toddlers at home in lieu of enrolling them in state daycare facilities. If passed, it will appropriate 300 million Euros (500 million dollars) … Read more >
German Family Policy and the Idea of “Wahlfreiheit”
At 3.1 percent of GDP, Germany spends far above the OECD average on family benefits, whereas the United States spends only 1.3 percent of its GDP on family benefits. However, differences in spending are not the only contrasts regarding family policy in Germany and the U.S., writes former DAAD/AICGS Fellow Dr. Isabelle Kürschner. They also differ significantly with respect to parental leave systems, maternal employment rates, and the number of children born in each country. Dr. Kürschner examines the distinctiveness of German family policy in this Transatlantic Perspectives essay.
