The ESP (Equally Shared Parenting) blog has a good post up about part-time & flexible work trends in The Netherlands ... and at Microsoft!
In fact, one in three Dutch fathers now works either part-time or full-time at four days per week so that he can be home at least one day per week with his kids. The percent of part-time women in the workforce is still far greater (75%), but this is actually helping the cause - as formerly male-dominated fields are being increasingly populated by women and forcing the change in thinking about part-time work.
The Dutch government is a help in these changes, rather than a hindrance. The government awarded its own "Modern Man Prize" for breaking gender stereotypes; the winner was chosen for co-founding a campaign that promotes part-time work for men - and for working four days a week himself. And interestingly, the Netherlands is the only country in which women actually work less than men, even after you add up hours spent on childcare and housework!
And our own Microsoft is right in the mix, at least when it comes to telecommuting flexibility. Featured in the article, Microsoft Netherlands boasts that ninety-five percent of its employees work from home at least one day a week; a full quarter do so four out of five days. "Each team has a "physical minimum;" some meet twice a week in the office, others once a quarter. Online communication and conference calls save time, fuel and paper waste. The company says it has cut its carbon footprint by 900 tons this year."
Note that I have been working part-time from when I went back to work after Z was born. I was 1/2 time for the entire rest of my career at Premera (except for a few weeks here and there for Kaizen events, which was fine because I LOVED those). I was 3-days per week at the lean consultant I worked for here in Melb. Now I am up to 4-days (30 hours) / week at World Vision Australia (full-time in Aus is 37.5 hours or 5 X 7.5 hours). One reason I love working at WVA is it seems that a majority of the organisation works either part-time or some days from home. Some do a 50 / 52 or 48 / 52 arrangement to be home with their kids during term breaks (this is when you take extra weeks unpaid leave, but spread your pay out so you get paid a steady rate year-round. Full-time workers in Aus get 4 weeks paid leave (plus a bunch of public holidays) - so a 48/52 means you get 8 weeks off per year).
FWIW (a LOT, IMO) L has worked from home some part of the week since Z was born, too. (These days we have almost a "reverse traditional" set-up, with me, The Wife, being the out-of-the-home worker and he, The Husband, being the stay-at-home parent ... sometimes to his chagrin, but I sure like it!)