September 01, 2020
All qualifying Employees who are natural or adoptive parents of, or who are persons acting in loco parentis to, a child under the relevant age are currently entitled to avail of up to 22 working weeks Parental Leave.
From 1st September 2019 the Parental Leave (Amendment) Act 2019 brought a number of changes:
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Previously parents with children up to 8 years of age were eligible to avail of Parental Leave. This has increased to 12 years of age from 1st September 2019.
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Parental Leave weeks increased from 18 to 22 weeks.
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Eligibility in cases of adoption has changed to between 10 and 12 years, previously between 6 and 8 years.
From 1st September 2020 Parental Leave will increase by a further 4 weeks bringing the total leave available up to 26 weeks.
If an Employee has already taken some or all of their current entitlement, he /she will still get the extra weeks of Parental Leave if his / her child is still under the qualifying age.
In order to qualify for Parental Leave an Employee must meet the following criteria;
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he/she must have completed 12 months’ service on 1st September 2019 with the Organisation to qualify for 22 working weeks leave, or
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he/she must have completed 12 months’ service on 1st September 2020 with the Organisation to qualify for 26 working weeks leave, or
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where the child is about to go over the relevant age, and the Employee has completed more than 3 months service but less than 12, he/she will be entitled to avail of 1 working week of leave per completed month of service.
Parental Leave can be taken in a continuous period of 6 weeks or more. Requests to take Parental Leave in smaller periods of time must be pre agreed by the Organisation and is at the Organisation’s sole discretion.
Taking Parental Leave does not affect an Employees employment rights and their position remains as if no Parental Leave had been taken. This means that time spent on Parental Leave can be used to accumulate annual leave entitlement and Employees are entitled to any public holidays that occur while they are on Parental Leave.