The TUC has dubbed Britain the "scrooge of Europe" as Britain offers new mothers get just six weeks of statutory maternity pay at 90% of their wage, while in Europe the figure was 43 weeks.
The TUC said under the EU definition, 'well paid' means someone getting at least two-thirds of their pre-maternity leave earnings, or a rate of pay greater than £840.
The study, published to coincide with the Children and Families Bill entering the staging process in the House of Lords, found Mothers in Britain are also entitled to an additional 33 weeks pay but only at £136 a week, a rate that the TUC claims has fallen in real terms under the current Government.
Only one in four women receive extra occupational maternity pay from their employers in the UK, said the report.
TUC, general secretary, Frances O'Grady, said: "Unfortunately when it comes to supporting parents looking after a new baby, the UK is the scrooge of Europe.
"Countries across Europe are incredibly diverse, especially in the challenges they face, yet all of them have found ways to offer better support for new parents.
"A modest way to start turning this round would be for the government to give new fathers six weeks' well-paid leave. Without a properly paid system of shared parental leave, women will be forced to put their careers on hold as they continue to be the primary carers in their child's all-important first year."
