Is it possible to be a parent and have a career? The new UNI/PdR 192:2026 introduces a management system for work-life balance.
Even as the years go by, one question keeps resurfacing: is it possible to be a parent and have a career at the same time? Or, in 2026, does becoming a parent — and especially a mother — still mean having to choose between personal and professional life?
The question concerns everyone. The demographic decline and the ageing population make it ever clearer. Care work, which still falls largely on women, includes not only children but also caring for elderly or dependent relatives, with repercussions on the labour market, female participation, the birth rate and the social and economic sustainability of the country.
UNI/PdR 192:2026
For years work-life balance was treated as a set of benefits, and maternity seen as a cost. Yet it concerns the very sustainability of organizations. A first step was already taken in 2022 with UNI/PdR 125, which guides organizations in building a gender equality management system.
A company that cannot support its people in the most delicate moments of their lives risks losing skills and attracting less talent. Today work is judged not only by salary or role but also by the chance to build a real balance between professional and personal life.
It is in this vein that the new UNI/PdR 192:2026, "Management system for work-life balance – Requirements for family wellbeing", comes in. Published on 14 April 2026 on the basis of the "Family Audit" of the Autonomous Province of Trento, it introduces a structured model to turn work-life balance from a set of isolated initiatives into a true management system, supported by 28 KPIs on parental leave, support for parenthood, support for new mothers and fathers, services for families, physical and mental wellbeing and work flexibility.
Funding for certification
As already happened for UNI/PdR 125 with Law no. 162 of 5 November 2021, for UNI/PdR 192 the legislator has also provided economic support, through Decree-Law no. 62 of 30 April 2026. For the 2026-2028 period, dedicated funds have been allocated and a contribution relief is provided of up to 1% of total social security contributions, up to a maximum of €50,000 per company per year. Added to this are promotional initiatives for certified companies coordinated by ICE.
How does it integrate with UNI/PdR 125:2022?
The two practices share the same methodological approach: management system, measurable goals, performance indicators, continuous monitoring and progressive improvement. While UNI/PdR 125 introduced a structured approach to reducing the gender gap, UNI/PdR 192 focuses on work-life balance, one of the fundamental areas of the 125.
The measures dedicated to flexibility, parental leave, support for new parents, services for families and wellbeing become concrete tools that also strengthen the goals of UNI/PdR 125. For many companies the new practice is not a separate path but a coherent integration with existing systems. The challenge is still cultural: seeing work-life balance not as a cost but as a structural component of organizational sustainability.
Bring diversity management into your company with Complify's UNI/PdR 192 pathway.
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