Chapter 231 - Corporate Christmas Party (3)

"Don't you drink wine? This is our subsidiary's wine. It's quality is number one. I personally wouldn't spend money to buy this because the price is sooo expensive... aahaha... But if given for free, I will drink A LOT." Ruth said happily.

Finland shook her head with a smile, "I'm not drinking wine..."

"Oh yeah? Are you Muslim? Why don't you drink alcohol?" Ruth asked in surprise. She remembered Finland was of Indonesian descent and realized that the majority of the country's population adheres to Islam which forbade alcoholic drinks.

"No, I'm not drinking wine because I'm pregnant..." Finally, Finland admitted bluntly. She did not want to make absurd excuses, after all, sooner or later her pregnancy would begin to show.

Ruth was agape, "Gosh... are you pregnant again? You're still so young, and child number two is already on the way..."

Finland wanted to protest because she felt that she was not that young. She was almost 27 years old. But then she realized that in Western countries, most career women delayed getting married and having children because they wanted to focus on work.

It was especially difficult for women in America to have children and careers at the same time because they did not provide maternity leave for mothers. The cost of child care and baby sitter was also extremely expensive.

It was very different from Finland, where every mother could get a four-month paid leave after they gave birth to a child, and every father could get a two-month paid leave. After the maternity leave, one parent could continue to 'leave' work until their child was 3 years old and still receive a salary of 450 euros (approx. 500 USD) per month. Thereafter, they were entitled to return to their old jobs.

Also, for over 75 years, the government of Finland had been gifting mothers-to-be with a large box which contained all the necessities required by a newborn such as blankets, baby clothes, diapers, baby shampoo, baby powder, etc., and the box itself could function as a baby crib! It was a kind of starter kit for parents who were expecting a newborn.

This was done by the government to give all babies an equal opportunity in life from the moment they were born regardless of their family background. Also, due to this custom, Finland had one of the lowest infant mortality rates in the world. Of course, all these facilities could be enjoyed by citizens of Finland because they paid very high taxes.

A few years ago, Sweden also started implementing a similar policy by providing parents with a 16-month parental leave per child, and some of the leave must be used by the father. Mothers would usually take leave for 10 months, and the fathers would take the remaining 6 months.

That way they could take care of their baby together.. Additional leave would be given if they had twins. That was why now, in Sweden, the sight of fathers spending time with their children in cafes was getting very common because fathers also get the privilege of taking time off work if they had children. They could spend time with their children when they took this leave.

Norway, too, had a generous and flexible birth leave system. Mothers could take 35 weeks of paid leave, receiving full salary, or 45 weeks of paid leave, receiving 80% of their salary. Fathers could take up to 10 weeks of leave depending on the wives' income.

Together, both parents could also get an additional 46 weeks of leave with full salary or 56 weeks with 80% pay. Not all developed countries implement such a child-friendly systems.

In the United States, even though citizens paid high taxes, the health facilities and benefits they receive were far below what they pay for. Men and women did not get leave if they had children, because it was not regulated in the law.

That was why in America, there were fewer female executives than male executives, because women were forced to choose between their family or career. They couldn't compromise with having children if they wanted to reach the top positions.

So, it was understandable why Ruth seemed so surprised to know that Finland already had child and was even pregnant with her next one, in the midst of work competition as it was today.

"You are looking for trouble... Having two children at such a young age and busy work life like now... Jeez..." Ruth gulped down her wine and signaled the waiter to refill her glass. "Good luck."

Finland could only smile. She wouldn't want to get pregnant again, if she had to raise her children alone. It was hard being a single parent. She and Aleksis were lucky they met Lauriel who accompanied and helped them a lot.