Calling it paid is a bit of a misnomer in our case. In Canada the mother can take 17-weeks (unpaid). Depending on the province they may take up to 52-weeks. While on parental/adoptive leave you can go on unemployment (E.I., Employment Insurance) which you have paid into since you started working. I think you can take time off after a miscarriage/stillbirth as well. Your employer is not required to keep paying your salary but they must hold your seat.
The father has the option to split the leave after the first 17-weeks (maternity) but most men never take any of the remainder (parental). Quebec has begun offering 5-weeks of paid leave for fathers to encourage them which has been somewhat effective. I think some men would rather see their wives get all the time off or would rather be working since E.I. does not provide a full/equal salary.
It is not uncommon for women 25-30 to take eight months, come back for six months or more, part of which would be spent pregnant a consecutive time, then leave again. I think my friend once worked cover for parental leave when the person covering for parental leave went on parental leave.
E.I. encompasses unemployment, seasonal work, long term disability, mental health, and other aspects so everyone eventually gets some benefit from it.