The United States offers new mothers 12 weeks of protected leave after child birth, according to the Pew Research Center. While leave is required, it is not mandated to be paid leave.

But of the 38 countries represented in the 2013 Pew study, the United States is the only country to not offer mandatory paid leave for new parents, while Estonia, a smaller country in Eastern Europe, offers almost two years of paid leave. Many of the countries featured in the study, such as France, Germany, Hungary and Finland, offered a median of 13 months of protective leave for new mothers.

In Sweden, parents are entitled to 480 days of paid parental leave, and now 60 of those days are reserved for the father. Servies Radio reports that in 2012, nearly of quarter of Swedish fathers took their paternity leave.

Many are reacting positively on social media to Sweden extending their paid paternity leave.