Our website uses cookies to offer you a better browsing experience, analyse site traffic, personalise content, and serve targeted advertisements. Key themes, including promoting the "participation of women in the labour market" and "making it easier for men to share the responsibilities of caring for children" are expressly called out within the General Scheme of the 2019 Bill. Employers are advised to engage and consult with employees on such applications, in particular where an employer intends to postpone the granting of such leave. Against the backdrop of a proposed EU Directive on improving work life balance, there have been a number of important legislative proposals in Ireland focusing on family leave in the past two years: The Government has approved the priority drafting of the necessary legislation to introduce the 2019 Bill later this year. This period is not covered by Maternity Benefit but you will be entitled to a credited social insurance contribution for each week of unpaid leave you take (up to the maximum of 16). 18 weeks unpaid leave for each child under the age of 8 (child with long term illness under 16 years). To be entitled to this, the employee generally has to have completed one year's continuous employment with their current employer. Subject to PRSI contributions, as of November 2019, during the first year of a child's life both parents will have access to two weeks parental leave. With the Summer break just around the corner, the question of childcare is at the forefront of many parents' minds, and so too the issue of parental leave entitlement. For instance, an employee on parental leave will continue to accrue service and statutory annual leave and public holiday entitlement as normal. Similar to the situation of State Maternity and Paternity Benefit, it will be up to individual employers to determine whether or not to "top up" the Parental Benefit amount. The 2019 Bill proposes that such records should be maintained for eight years after the parental leave is taken and envisages class B fines for failure to keep such records. If you are a member of a pension scheme, your membership must continue while on statutory maternity leave. Although parental leave is unpaid, taking such leave will not affect other employment rights and entitlements. 26 working weeks' parental leave per parent). The concept of parental leave is not new and has been provided for under Irish legislation for over 20 years. The emphasis on accurate record-keeping is further underlined in the General Scheme of the 2019 Bill, which envisages the Workplace Relations Commission prosecuting such offences. At the discretion of the employer, the parental leave entitlement can be taken in other forms broken down over days or even hours. The entitlement to leave is enshrined in the Maternity Protection Act, 1994 and the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act, 2004. Your pension entitlements during maternity leave depend on the nature and terms of your pension arrangement. Premature births Building on existing statutory entitlements to paid maternity and paternity leave, the 2019 Bill introduces the concept of paid parental leave for employees in Ireland for the first time. Copies of the Acts may be viewed or downloaded here – Maternity Protection Act, 1994 and Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act, 2004. When your paid Maternity Benefit ends, it is possible to take 16 weeks of unpaid maternity leave. This will be paid by the State at the same rate as the current State Maternity Benefit (€245 per week) – i.e. The 2017 Bill proposes to increase the parental leave entitlement by an additional eight weeks (i.e. The 2019 Bill envisages parents taking the paid parental leave in blocks of "not less than one week" and that parents availing of additional maternity or adoptive leave may take their portion of paid parental leave beforehand. If she dies within 24 weeks of the birth, he can choose to take the 16 weeks’ additional maternity leave. Web: www.pensionsauthority.ie, Email: info@pensionsauthority.ie, A Personal Retirement Savings Account (PRSA), Find out how personalising this site will greatly enhance your browsing experience. You can find further details on the Maternity Benefit Scheme on the Department of Social Protection’s website. If you wish to claim Maternity Benefit credit click here. In order to personalise your content you must select all three options. An employer is also entitled to postpone any application for parental leave for up to six months if granting such leave at that point in time would have a "substantial adverse effect on the operation" of the employer's business. The current entitlement is to 26 weeks’ maternity leave together with 16 weeks additional unpaid maternity leave. What are my rights under the Maternity Protection Acts 1994–2004? By introducing a longer entitlement to parental leave until children are older, alongside the 2019 Bill's promise of two weeks of such leave being paid by the State, the legislative proposals seek to incentivise more men (in particular) to avail of at least some of their parental leave entitlement. The new Bill also intends to increase the eligibility age of children from eight years to 12 years. Paid Parental Leave is on the way – what do Irish employers need to know? The leave starts within 7 days of the mother’s death. There is no social welfare benefit like maternity benefit. Any such transfer is capped at 14 working weeks. If you have your own personal pension or Personal Retirement Savings Account you may be able to continue contributing provided your total contributions for the tax year are within the limits permitted by Revenue. Under the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act 2004 at least 2 weeks have to be taken before the end of the week of your baby's expected birth and at least 4 weeks after. So what does this mean for employers when it comes to managing parental leave requests from employees – and how much will it cost? the Parental Benefit. Under the Maternity Protection Acts, you may be entitled to statutory minimum maternity leave of 26 weeks with an additional 16 weeks unpaid. The operational aspects of parental leave entitlement are unchanged by the new bills. You will not be paid for this, but you will get a social insurance (PRSI) credit for each week of unpaid leave you take. These comments reflect the evolving workplace landscape, with recent shifts towards mandatory gender pay gap reporting and a draft EU directive focused on work-life balance bringing the question of family leave firmly into the spotlight. What are the current parental leave entitlements? The entitlement to leave is enshrined in the Maternity Protection Act, 1994 and the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act, 2004. The 2019 Bill You will continue to accrue pensionable service during the period of statutory leave. Parental leave policies will need to be updated to reflect the new enhancements when the bills are enacted and accurate records of all applications should be maintained. Your pension entitlements during maternity leave depend on the nature and terms of your pension arrangement. Read also: … Foreign Nationals on Irish Fishing Vessels, Voluntary Dispute Resolution (Enhanced Code), Dispute Procedures including in Essential Services, Code of Practice to Address Bullying in the Workplace, Code of Practice on Access to Part-time Work, Code of Practice on Sunday Working in the Retail Trade, Code of Practice on Compensatory Rest Periods, Code of Practice for Protecting Persons Employed in Other People's Homes, Duties and Responsibilities of Employee Representatives, Code of Practice on Protected Disclosures, Employment Equality Act 1998 (Code of Practice) (Harassment) Order 2012, Code of Practice Concerning the Employment of Young Persons in Licensed Premises, Enforcement of Decisions or Determinations, Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act, 2004. You can take a further 16 weeks of unpaid maternity leave which must be taken immediately after the end of your 26 weeks’ paid Maternity Benefit. The Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection has commented that the fact the Parental Benefit will be non-transferable and available to parents on a 'use it or lose it' basis will help "incentivise fathers to take more time off work to care for their children".