One in three workers with care responsibilities (33%) says their job conflicts with caring for children or dependent relatives, according to a special survey by ELSTAT. A deep divide is also evident in family leave: among those who have raised children, eight in ten public-sector employees have taken family leave, compared with just one in four in the private sector.
The special survey on combining family life and work was conducted alongside the Labour Force Survey in all four quarters of 2025, covering people aged 18-74. Overall, 29.8% of the population say they have care responsibilities. Some 25.7% care only for children, 3.2% only for dependent adults and 0.9% for both.
The pressure is greatest where careers and family responsibilities peak at the same time. Among people aged 35-44, 65.7% have care responsibilities, more than twice the average. This age group also has the highest rate of conflict between work and care (37.5%).
Public vs private: parenthood on two tracks
The survey’s biggest divide is not between men and women, but between the public and private sectors. ELSTAT looked at people who have raised children and are or have been in employment. Of these, 80.9% of public-sector employees have taken family leave, compared with just 27.4% in the private sector.
At the other end of the scale, the picture is reversed. In the private sector, 70.7% have never taken any form of family leave, compared with just 18% in the public sector.
| Use of family leave | Public sector | Private sector |
|---|
| Took leave (total) | 80.9% | 27.4% |
| Maternity or paternity leave only | 7.2% | 5.3% |
| Parental leave only | 26.6% | 4.7% |
| Both types of leave | 47.1% | 17.3% |
| Did not take family leave | 18.0% | 70.7% |
| Average number of children raised | 1.48 | 1.07 |
Source: ELSTAT, Special Survey on the Combination of Family Life and Work, 2025. People aged 18-54 who have raised children and are or have been in employment.
The difference is not just whether people take leave, but also how comprehensive their leave is. The combination of maternity/paternity leave and parental leave for raising children applies to 47.1% of public-sector employees. That is almost three times the rate in the private sector (17.3%).
Parental leave for raising children without any other type of leave is virtually non-existent in the private sector (4.7%), while it applies to 26.6% in the public sector. This is leave available to parents from the end of maternity/paternity leave until the child turns six.
The divide is also reflected in the number of children. Public-sector employees say they have raised an average of 1.48 children, compared with 1.07 in the private sector — nearly 40% more. By comparison, the average for the population as a whole aged 18-54 is 1.06, and for those in employment it is 1.15.
The survey does not explain the reason for the difference. It does not establish whether the job security and leave available in the public sector make it easier to have children, or whether the public sector simply employs a different population, for example in terms of age. It does, however, clearly show that access to family leave depends to a large extent on the employer.
What is behind it: long hours and exhaustion
For nearly two-thirds of workers who find it difficult to balance work and care (61.9%), the problem lies in the length and intensity of the work itself. The main reason is long working hours (34.9%), followed by a demanding or exhausting job (27.0%).
| Main work-related difficulty | Share |
|---|
| Long working hours | 34.9% |
| Demanding or exhausting job | 27.0% |
| Unpredictable or difficult work schedules | 13.0% |
| Long commute between home and work | 12.9% |
| Other work-related obstacles | 12.2% |
Source: ELSTAT. Workers who report difficulty combining work with care responsibilities.
Unpredictable schedules and commuting time each account for about 13%. Together, however, they affect one in four workers who report difficulty — a significant share.
Who is under the greatest pressure: women and people aged 35-44
Women report conflicts between work and care more often (35.4%, compared with 33% overall). They are also more likely to have care responsibilities: 31.9%, compared with 27.6% of men.
People aged 35-44 face the greatest pressure. Some 61.9% of this group care only for children, while a further 2% care for both children and dependent adults. 37.5% say their job conflicts with these responsibilities.
People in employment are more likely to have care responsibilities (35.2%) than the unemployed (28.9%) and those outside the labour force (20.8%). In other words, care falls mainly on those who also have a job.
The pressure does not end when children reach adulthood. Among people aged 45-54, 39.1% still have care responsibilities. For those aged 55-64, care for dependent adults reaches 5.5%, the highest rate of any age group.
Leave is mostly taken by mothers
75% of men who have raised children have never taken family leave. Among women, the figure is 46.1%. Most mothers (51%) have taken maternity leave, parental leave or both, with the combination the most common option (39.2%).
Of the 24% of men who took leave, most used parental leave (16.5%). Just 1.7% took paternity leave only.
The gap widens when the duration of leave is considered. 85.3% of men who took leave were away for up to six months, and just 2.8% for more than a year. By contrast, 27.1% of women took leave for between six months and a year, and 30.5% for more than a year.
Access to leave varies sharply by education and citizenship:
- People with a university or technical college degree: 59.2%; with a postgraduate degree: 58.7%
- People educated no further than lower secondary school: 9.2%
- Greek citizens: 40.7%; foreign nationals: 14.3%
The contradiction is clear: the groups with the least access to leave are those who have raised the most children. People educated no further than lower secondary school have an average of 1.61 children, while foreign nationals have 1.41.
Two in three parents do not use childcare services
67.9% of those caring for children under 15 use no professional childcare services, such as a nursery, an all-day school or a babysitter. Just 25.5% use such services for all their children.
As their main reason, nearly half (47.6%) say they prefer to care for their children themselves or with their partner. Help from relatives and friends comes next (19.4%), followed by children now looking after themselves (18.1%). Just 9.6% attribute their choice to a problem with the services: cost (5.6%), availability (3%) or quality or another obstacle (1%).
For working parents, the informal support network of relatives carries particular weight. 23.1% of employed people who do not use childcare services rely on relatives and friends, compared with just 7.8% of the unemployed.
Use of services is closely linked to employment. Some 34.9% of employed parents use them for all or some of their children, compared with 17% of unemployed parents. Use stands at 31.7% among couples with children, while among single parents it is limited to 19.3%.
* See the survey in the Supplementary Material column.