育休(いくきゅう)

Forms

Short for 育児休業(いくじきゅうぎょう), the legal term; 育休(いくきゅう) is the everyday word.

Cultural note

Either parent may take it, usually until the child turns one (extendable to two when no daycare place is available), with partial pay from employment insurance. The government promotes 男性(だんせい)育休(いくきゅう) (paternity leave); fathers' uptake, long in single digits, reached about 30 percent in 2023.

Common collocations

• 育休(いくきゅう)を取(と)る - to take childcare leave
• 育休(いくきゅう)取得(しゅとく) - taking childcare leave
• 育休(いくきゅう)から復帰(ふっき)する - to return from childcare leave
• 育休明(いくきゅうあ)け - just after returning from childcare leave

Related words

• 産休(さんきゅう) - maternity leave (the weeks just before and after the birth)
• 介護休暇(かいごきゅうか) - family care leave
• 時短勤務(じたんきんむ) - reduced working hours