(Swedish citizen here, so can't speak for Germany) I'm not gonna tell you it's easy. But it's not as bad as it sounds. The state takes the biggest hit. The em

(Swedish citizen here, so can't speak for Germany) I'm not gonna tell you it's easy. But it's not as bad as it sounds. The state takes the biggest hit. The employee does not receive full salary and the employer only pay a small part of that salary. Swedish blue-chip companies (read: Ericsson, Volvo, H&M, AstraZeneca etc) will typically go above and beyond the standard benefits and provide full salary while the employee is on maternity/paternity leave. But that is a decision they have made themselves, just like large US companies have all sorts of fringe benefits not mandated by law. There are also morals in play here, you wouldn't join a startup if you are planning to have kids. And besides, most parents would prefer working at a large company while getting kids just because of the risk of a small company. All in all, the situation is not that bad. I think it's a small price to pay to ensure we have growth in the future workforce :)