Parental Leave Act 1998

PART I Preliminary and General

1. Short title and commencement.

1.—(1)This Act may be cited as the Parental Leave Act, 1998.

(2)This Act shall come into operation on the 3rd day of December, 1998.

2. Interpretation.

2.—(1)In this Act—

F1["Act of 2015" means the Workplace Relations Act 2015;

"adopting parent" means a qualifying adopter or a surviving parent within the meaning of the definitions of "qualifying adopter" and "surviving parent" in section 2 (1) of the Adoptive Leave Act 1995 but as if, in both of those definitions, "or is to be placed" were omitted in each place where it occurs;]

F2["adoption order" means an adoption order within the meaning ofsection 3(1) of the Adoption Act 2010 or a recognition of an intercountry adoption effected outside the State within the meaning of that Act;]

F1["adoptive parent", in relation to a child, means a person in whose favour an adoption order in respect of the child has been made and is in force;]

F1["approved flexible working arrangement" means a flexible working arrangement, the request for which has been approved undersection 13C(1)(b)(i);

"civil partner" shall be construed in accordance with section 3 of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010;

"code of practice" means any code of practice for the time being standing approved in accordance with Part 4 of the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023;

"cohabitant" shall be construed in accordance with section 172 (1) of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010;]

“confirmation document” has the meaning assigned to it by section 9;

F1["continuous employment" includes employment completed by an employee under two or more continuous fixed-term contracts with the same employer;]

“contract of employment” means—

(a)a contract of service or apprenticeship, or

(b)any other contract whereby an individual agrees with another person, who is carrying on the business of an employment agency within the meaning of the Employment Agency Act, 1971, and is acting in the course of that business, to do or perform personally any work or service for a third person (whether or not the third person is a party to the contract),

whether the contract is express or implied and if express, whether it is oral or in writing;

“date”, in relation to a confirmation document, means the date on which it is signed by the parties thereto or the later of the dates on which it is so signed;

F3["employee" means a person of any age who has entered into or works under (or, where the employment has ceased, entered into or worked under) a contract of employment and includes a part-time employee and a fixed-term employee, and references, in relation to an employer, to an employee shall be construed as references to an employee employed by that employer; and for the purposes of this Act, a person holding office under, or in the service of, the State (including a member of the Garda Síochána or the Defence Forces or a civil servant within the meaning of the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956) shall be deemed to be an employee employed by the head (within the meaning of the Freedom of Information Act 2014), of the public body (within the meaning aforesaid) in which he or she is employed and an officer or servant of a local authority for the purposes of the Local Government Act 2001 (as amended by the Local Government Reform Act 2014), or of a harbour authority, the Health Service Executive or a member of staff of an education and training board shall be deemed to be an employee employed by the authority, Executive or board, as the case may be;]

“employer”, in relation to an employee—

(a)means the person with whom the employee has entered into or for whom the employee works under (or, where the employment has ceased, entered into or worked under) a contract of employment, subject to the qualification that the person who under a contract of employment referred to in paragraph (b) of the definition of “contract of employment” is liable to pay the remuneration of the individual concerned in respect of the work or service concerned shall be deemed to be the individual's employer, and

(b)includes, where appropriate, the successor or an associated employer of the employer;

F4["fixed-term employee" has the meaning assigned to it bysection 2(1) of theProtection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003;]

F1["flexible working arrangement" means a working arrangement where an employee’s working hours or patterns are adjusted, including through the use of remote working arrangements, flexible working schedules or reduced working hours;]

“force majeure leave” shall be construed in accordance with section 13(1);

F1["household" means a person who lives alone or 2 or more persons who live together;]

“job”, in relation to an employee, means the nature of the work that the employee is employed to do in accordance with his or her contract of employment and the capacity and place in which he or she is employed;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform;

“parental leave” shall be construed in accordance with section 6(1);

F4["part-time employee" has the meaning assigned to it bysection 7(1) of theProtection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001;]

“prescribed” means prescribed by the Minister by regulations;

F1["relevant parent", in relation to a child, means a person who is—

(a) the parent, the adoptive parent or the adopting parent in respect of the child, or

(b) acting in loco parentis to the child;

"request for a flexible working arrangement" means a request referred to undersection 13B(1);]

F5["specified Act" means the Parental Leave (Amendment) Act 2019;

"specified day" means the day on which the specified Act comes into operation;]

“successor”, in relation to an employer, shall be construed in accordance with section 15(1);

“the Tribunal” means the Employment Appeals Tribunal.

(2)For the purposes of this Act, two employers shall be taken to be associated if one is a body corporate of which the other (whether directly or indirectly) has control or if both are bodies corporate of which a third person (whether directly or indirectly) has control and “associated employer” shall be construed accordingly.

(3)In this Act—

(a)a reference to a Part or section is a reference to a Part or section of this Act unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended,

(b)a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph is a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph of the provision in which the reference occurs unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended, and

(c)a reference to any enactment shall be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended, adapted or extended, whether before or after the passing of this Act, by or under any subsequent enactment.

F1[(3A) For the purposes of this Act, a person shall be considered to be in need of significant care or support for a serious medical reason where, owing to the person’s disability, injury or illness, he or she requires such care or support that includes the presence of the employee at the place where the person is.]

F3[(4) A word or expression used in this Act and also in Directive (EU) 2019/1158 of 20 June 2019^2shall have the same meaning in this Act as in that Directive.]

3. Regulations.

3.—(1)The Minister may—

(a)by regulations provide for any matter referred to in this Act as prescribed or to be prescribed, and

(b)make regulations generally for the purpose of giving effect to this Act and, if in any respect any difficulty arises during the period of two years after the commencement of this section in bringing into operation this Act, by regulations do anything which appears to be necessary or expedient for enabling this Act to have full effect.

(2)Before making a regulation under this Act, the Minister shall consult with persons whom he or she considers to be representative of employers generally and persons whom he or she considers to be representative of employees generally in relation to the regulation.

(3)A regulation under this Act may contain such consequential, supplementary and ancillary provisions as the Minister considers necessary or expedient.

(4)Every regulation under this Act shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the regulation is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the regulation is laid before it, the regulation shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to anything previously done thereunder.

4. Voidance or modification of certain provisions in agreements.

4.—(1)A provision in any agreement shall be void in so far as it purports to exclude or limit the application of any provision of this Act or is inconsistent with any provision of this Act.

(2)A provision in any agreement which is or becomes less favourable in relation to an employee than a similar or corresponding entitlement conferred on the employee by this Act shall be deemed to be so modified as to be not less favourable.

(3)Nothing in this Act shall be construed as prohibiting the inclusion in an agreement of a provision more favourable to an employee than any provision in Parts II to V.

(4)References in this section to an agreement are to any agreement, whether a contract of employment or not and whether made before or after the passing of this Act.

5. Expenses.

5.—Any expenses incurred by the Minister or the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART II Parental Leave and Force Majeure Leave

6. F6[Entitlement to parental leave.

6.—(1) Subject to this Act, an employee who is a relevant parent in respect of a child shall be entitled to leave from his or her employment, to be known and referred to in this Act as "parental leave", for a period ofF7[18 working weeks]to enable him or her to take care of the child.

F8[(1A) The reference insubsection (1)to a period of 18 working weeks shall be construed—

(a) in the period from 1 September 2019 to 31 August 2020, as a reference to a period of 22 working weeks, and

(b) on and from 1 September 2020, as a reference to a period of 26 working weeks.]

(2) Subject tosections 10(4)and11(6), a period of parental leave shall end—

(a) subject toparagraphs (b)and(c), not later than the day on which the child concernedF9[attains the age of 12 years],

(b) subject toparagraph (c), in the case of a child who—

(i) is the subject of an adoption order, and

(ii) has, on or before the date of the making of that order,F9[attained the age of 10 years but not 12 years],

not later than the expiration of the period of 2 years beginning on that date, or

(c) if the child concerned has a disabilityF10[or a long-term illness], not later than the day on which the child—

(i) attains the age of 16 years, or

F7[(ii) ceases to have that disability or long-term illness or any other disability or long-term illness,]

whichever first occurs.

(3) A period of parental leave shall not commence before a time when the employee concerned has completed one year’s continuous employment with the employer from whose employment the leave is taken.

F11[(3A) For the purposes of this section, where an employee ceases to be the employee of an employer and, not more than 26 weeks after the date of cesser, the employee again becomes the employee of the employer, the period of service of that employee with that employer before the date of cesser shall be deemed to be continuous with the period of service of that employee with that employer after again becoming such employee.]

(4) Subject to this Act, an employee shall be entitled to parental leave in respect of each child of which he or she is a relevant parent.

(5) A person who is a relevant parent in more than one capacity in respect of a child shall not be entitled to parental leave in more than one such capacity in respect of the child.

(6) Where 2 or more relevant parents in respect of a child are entitled to parental leave in respect of the child, none of the parents shall be entitled to—

(a) the parental leave of any other parent in respect of the child, or

(b) transfer any part of the period of his or her parental leave to any other parent in respect of the child.

F7[(6A) Notwithstandingsubsection (6), where 2 or more relevant parents in respect of a child are entitled to parental leave in respect of the child and the parents are each employed by the same employer, then each relevant parent shall, subject to the consent of the employer concerned, be entitled to transfer part, not exceeding 14 working weeks, of the period of his or her parental leave to any other relevant parent in respect of the child.]

(7) Notwithstandingsubsection (3), where an employee—

(a) will not have completed one year’s continuous employment with his or her employer on the latest day for commencing a period of parental leave having regard tosubsection (2), but

(b) has completed 3 months of such employment on the latest day for commencing a period of such leave provided for by this subsection,

the employee shall, subject to this Act, be entitled to parental leave for a period of one week for each month of continuous employment that he or she has completed with the employer at the time of the commencement of the leave.

(8) Where, before the relevant day, a person who is a relevant parent in respect of a child—

(a) has taken 14 weeks parental leave in respect of the child (and irrespective of whether the leave consisted of a continuous period or a number of periods), or

(b) has not taken 14 weeks parental leave in respect of the child (and irrespective of whether the person was prevented from taking all or any of the parental leave by the operation ofsubsection (3)of this section as in force before the relevant day),

then, on and after the relevant day—

(c) ifparagraph (a)is applicable, nothing in this Act as amended by the relevant Act shall entitle the person to any further period of parental leave in respect of that child, and

(d) ifparagraph (b)is applicable, this Act as amended by the relevant Act shall apply to so much of the 14 weeks of parental leave referred to in that paragraph as was not taken before the relevant day in respect of that child.

F8[(8A) Where, before the specified day, a person who is a relevant parent in respect of a child has not taken 18 weeks parental leave in respect of the child (and irrespective of whether the person was prevented from taking all or any of the parental leave by the operation ofsubsection (2)as in force before the specified day) then on and from the specified day this Act, as amended by the specified Act, shall apply to so much of the 18 weeks of parental leave as was not taken before the specified day in respect of that child.]

(9) In this section—

F12[…]

F12[…]

F12[…]

F10["continuous fixed-term contract" has the same meaning as it has in section 9(2) of theProtection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003;]

"disability", in relation to a child, means an enduring physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual impairment of the child such that the level of care required for the child is substantially more than the level of care that is generally required for children of the same age who do not have any such impairment;

F10["long-term illness", in relation to a child, means a long-term illness, the effect of which is that the level of care required for the child is substantially more than the level of care that is generally required for children of the same age who do not have any such long term illness;]

"relevant Act" means the Parental Leave (Amendment) Act 2006;

"relevant day" means the day on whichsection 2of the relevant Act comes into operation;

F12[…]]

7. Manner in which parental leave may be taken.

7.—(1)Subject to this Act, parental leave may consist of—

(a)a continuous period F13[equal to the period referred to insection 6(1)], F14[…]

F15[(aa) subject tosubsection (1A), 2 separate periods—

(i) each consisting of not less than 6 weeks, and

(ii) not exceedingF13[the number of weeks referred to insection 6(1)in total,]]

(b)with the agreement of the employer or representatives of the employer and other employers and the employee or representatives of the employee and other employees, a number of periods each of which comprises—

(i)one or more days on which, but for the leave, the employee would be working in the employment concerned,

(ii)one or more hours during which, but for the leave, the employee would be working in the employment concerned, or

(iii)any combination of periods referred to in F13[subparagraphs (i)and(ii), or]

F16[(ba) where an employee has taken leave pursuant toparagraph (a),(aa)or(b), periods each consisting of not less than 1 week.]

F15[(1A) Subject tosubsection (1B), where parental leave in respect of a child is taken by an employee pursuant tosubsection (1)(aa), then in respect of that child the employee is not entitled to take the second period of parental leave unless not less than 10 weeks have elapsed since the first period of parental leave ended.

(1B) The employer concerned (or representatives of the employer and other employers) and the employee concerned (or representatives of the employee and other employees) may agree to a shorter period than the 10 weeks referred to insubsection (1A), either in a particular case or a class of cases.]

(2)(a)Parental leave taken by an employee pursuant to subsection (1) (b) shall be such that the number of hours during which, but for the leave, the employee would be working in the employment concerned equals—

(i)the number of hours during which the employee worked in the employment concerned in such continuous period of F13[equal to the period referred to insection 6(1)] before the commencement of the leave as may be determined by the employee concerned and the employer, or

(ii)if the employee and the employer fail to determine a period for the purposes of subparagraph (i), F13[the relevant number times] the average number of hours per week during which the employee worked in the employment in each of the periods of F13[equal to the period referred to insection 6(1)] ending immediately before the commencement of each week in which he or she takes any of the leave.