Parent's Leave and Benefit Act 2019

PART 1 Preliminary and General

1. Short title and commencement

1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Parent’s Leave and Benefit Act 2019.

(2) This Act, other than Part 5, shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister may appoint by order or orders either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.

(3) Part 5 shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection may appoint by order or orders either generally or with reference to a particular purpose or provision and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.

2. Interpretation

2. (1) In this Act—

“Act of 1977” means the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977;

“Act of 1994” means the Maternity Protection Act 1994;

“Act of 1995” means the Adoptive Leave Act 1995;

“Act of 2005” means the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005;

“Act of 2010” means the Adoption Act 2010;

“Act of 2015” means the Workplace Relations Act 2015;

“Act of 2016” means the Paternity Leave and Benefit Act 2016;

“additional maternity leave” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 1994;

“adjudication officer” means a person appointed under section 40 of the Act of 2015;

F1[…]

F1[…]

“birth certificate” means a document issued under section 13(4) of the Civil Registration Act 2004;

“certificate of placement” has the meaning assigned to it by section 13 of the Act of 1995;

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

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

“contract of employment” means, subject to subsection (2) —

(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 Protection of Employees (Temporary Agency Work) Act 2012), and is acting in the course of that business, to do or perform personally any work or service for another person (whether or not that other 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 of confinement” shall be construed in accordance with section 51(1)(b) of the Act of 2005;

“day of placement” means the day on which a child who is, or is to be, adopted is placed physically in the care of the F2[the relevant adopting parent] with a view to the adoption of the child or, in the case of an intercountry adoption effected outside the State where the child has not previously been placed in the care of the relevant adopting parent, the day on which the child has been so placed following the adoption;

“declaration of eligibility and suitability” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2010;

F1[…]

“employee”, other than in section 25, 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;

“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 of the employer or an associated employer of the employer;

“expected week of confinement” has the meaning assigned to it by section 47(1)(a) of the Act of 2005;

“fixed-term employee” has the same meaning as it has in the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003;

“intercountry adoption effected outside the State” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2010;

“Labour Court” means the body established by section 10 of the Industrial Relations Act 1946;

“maternity leave” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 1994;

“Minister” means the Minister for Justice and Equality;

“parent’s leave” has the meaning assigned to it by section 5(1);

“part-time employee” has the same meaning as it has in Part 2 of the Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001;

“paternity leave” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2016;

F3["qualifying adopter", in relation to a child who is, or is to be adopted, means the qualifying adopter, within the meaning of the Act of 1995 (as amended by the Family Leave and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2021), of the child and includes, for the purposes of this Act, a person who would be a qualifying adopter but for the fact that he or she is not an employee;]

“registered medical practitioner” has the same meaning as it has in the Medical Practitioners Act 2007;

“relevant notification” has the meaning assigned to it by section 6(1);

“relevant parent”, in relation to a child, means a person who is—

F2[(a) in the case of a child who is, or is to be, adopted—

(i) the qualifying adopter of the child, and

(ii) the spouse, civil partner or cohabitant, as the case may be, of the qualifying adopter of the child,]

and

(b) in any other case—

(i) a parent of the child,

(ii) the spouse, civil partner or cohabitant, as the case may be, of a parent of the child, or

(iii) a parent of the child under section 5 of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 where the child is a donor-conceived child within the meaning of Part 2 of that Act;

F1[…]

“successor” has the meaning assigned to it by section 20(1)(a);

“surviving parent”, in relation to a child where a relevant parent in relation to the child has died, means—

F2[(a) in the case of a child who is, or is to be, adopted—

(i) where the deceased relevant parent was the qualifying adopter of the child, the spouse, civil partner or cohabitant, as the case may be, of the qualifying adopter of the child, or

(ii) where the deceased relevant parent was the spouse, civil partner or cohabitant, as the case may be, of the qualifying adopter of the child, the qualifying adopter concerned,

and]

(b) in any other case—

(i) where the deceased relevant parent of the child was a parent referred to in paragraph (b)(i) or (b)(iii), as the case may be, of the definition of relevant parent, the other parent of the child or the spouse, civil partner or cohabitant, as the case may be, of the deceased relevant parent, and

(ii) where the deceased relevant parent of the child was the spouse, civil partner or cohabitant, as the case may be, of a parent referred to in paragraph (b)(i) or (b)(iii), as the case may be, of the definition of relevant parent, the parent concerned;

“transferred parent’s leave” has the meaning assigned to it by section 16(1);

“transferred paternity leave” has the same meaning as it has in the Act of 2016.

(2) For the purposes of this Act—

(a) a person holding office under, or in the service of, the State (including a member of the Garda Síochána or the Defence Forces) or otherwise as a civil servant, within the meaning of the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956, shall be deemed to be an employee employed by the State or Government, as the case may be, under a contract of service, and

(b) an officer or servant of a local authority for the purposes of the Local Government Act 2001, a harbour authority or 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, under a contract of service.

(3) For the purposes of this Act, one employer shall be taken to be associated with another employer—

(a) if one is a body corporate of which the other (whether directly or indirectly) has control, or

(b) if both are bodies corporate of which a third person (whether directly or indirectly) has control.

(4) A reference in this Act to a child who is, or is to be, adopted is a reference to a child who is, or is to be, the subject of—

(a) an adoption order within the meaning of the Act of 2010, or

(b) an intercountry adoption effected outside the State and recognised under that Act.

(5) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires, a reference to a period of parent’s leave includes a reference to—

(a) a continuous period, or

(b) periods each consisting of not less than one week.

(6) For the purposes of Parts 3 and 4, a reference to parent’s leave includes a reference to transferred parent’s leave.

3. Voidance or modification of certain provisions in agreements

3. (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 section.

(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 Part 2.

(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 coming into operation of this section.

4. Expenses

4. The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART 2 Parent’s Leave

5. Entitlement to parent’s leave

5. (1) Subject to this Part, an employee who is a relevant parent in relation to a child shall be entitled to leave from his or her employment for a period of F4[9 weeks], to be known (and referred to in this Act) as “parent’s leave”, to enable him or her to provide, or assist in the provision of, care to the child.

(2) Other than where section 14 applies, the period of leave referred to in subsection (1) may comprise—

(a) a continuous period, or

(b) periods each consisting of not less than one week.

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

(4) Subject to section 16, where 2 or more relevant parents in relation to a child are entitled to parent’s leave in respect of the child, none of the parents shall be entitled—

(a) to the parent’s leave of any other parent in respect of the child, or

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

(5) Where the birth of a child is part of a multiple birth or a person adopts 2 or more children at the same time, a person who is a relevant parent in relation to the children concerned shall not, in respect of such children, be entitled to a period of parent’s leave that exceeds the period mentioned in subsection (1).

(6) Subsection (1) applies—

(a) in the case of a child who is, or is to be, adopted where the day of placement in respect of the child falls on or after 1 November 2019, or

(b) in any other case, where the date of confinement in respect of the child falls on or after 1 November 2019.

(7) Subject to subsections (8) to (10), the Minister may by order, made with the consent of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection and the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, amend subsection (1) and section 16(1) so as to extend the period mentioned in each of those subsections.

(8) An order under subsection (7) shall not extend the period mentioned in subsection (1) or section 16(1) beyond a total period of 9 weeks.

(9) Before making an order under subsection (7), the Minister shall have regard to the likely effect of the order on—

(a) the facilitation of relevant parents who are employees to balance paid employment and their responsibilities to their children in a fair and equitable way,

(b) the promotion of the participation of mothers in the labour market,

(c) the opportunity for relevant parents to share the responsibility of providing, or assisting in the provision of, care to their children on an equal basis,

(d) employers, and

(e) the cost to the Exchequer.

(10) Where an order is proposed to be made under subsection (7), a draft of the order shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas, and the order shall not be made until a resolution approving the draft has been passed by each such House.

6. Notification to employer

6. (1) Subject to this section and section 11, entitlement to parent’s leave shall be subject to an employee who is a relevant parent in relation to a child having notified in writing and in accordance with subsection (2) or (5), as the case may be, his or her employer (or caused his or her employer to be so notified) of his or her intention to take parent’s leave (in this Act referred to as a “relevant notification”).

(2) Notification under subsection (1) shall—

(a) in the case of an adoption where the relevant parent is a person referred to in paragraph (a)(i) of the definition of relevant parent in section 2(1)—

(i) be given not later than 6 weeks before the intended commencement of the parent’s leave,

(ii) indicate the expected date of commencement and duration of the parent’s leave, and

(iii) where the employer is not the same employer from whose employment the relevant parent has taken adoptive leave under section 6(1) of the Act of 1995, include—

(I) where the adoption is not an intercountry adoption effected or to be effected outside the State, a copy of the certificate of placement that he or she supplied to his or her employer under section 7(1)(c) of the Act of 1995, or

(II) where the adoption is an intercountry adoption effected or to be effected outside the State, a copy of an applicable declaration of eligibility and suitability and particulars in writing of the placement that he or she supplied to his or her employer under section 7(2)(c) of the Act of 1995,

F5[(b) in the case of an adoption, other than an intercountry adoption effected or to be effected outside the State, where the relevant parent is a person referred to inparagraph (a)(ii)of the definition of relevant parent insection 2(1)—

(i) be given not later than 6 weeks before the intended commencement of the parent’s leave,

(ii) indicate the expected date of commencement and duration of the parent’s leave, and

(iii) subject tosubsection (3), include a copy of the certificate of placement that the qualifying adopter concerned supplied to his or her employer under section 7(1)(c) of the Act of 1995,]

F5[(c) in the case of an intercountry adoption effected or to be effected outside the State, where the relevant parent is a person referred to inparagraph (a)(ii)of the definition of relevant parent insection 2(1)—

(i) be given not later than 6 weeks before the intended commencement of the parent’s leave,

(ii) indicate the expected date of commencement and duration of the parent’s leave, and

(iii) subject tosubsection (3), include a copy of an applicable declaration of eligibility and suitability that the qualifying adopter concerned supplied to his or her employer under section 7(2)(c) of the Act of 1995 and particulars in writing of the placement,]

(d) where the relevant parent is entitled to maternity leave—

(i) be given not later than 6 weeks before the intended commencement of the parent’s leave,

(ii) indicate the expected date of commencement and duration of the parent’s leave, and

(iii) where the employer is not the same employer from whose employment the relevant parent has taken maternity leave, include a copy of the medical, or other appropriate, certificate confirming the pregnancy and specifying the expected week of confinement that she gave to, or produced for the inspection of, her employer under section 9 of the Act of 1994 or a copy of the birth certificate issued to the child concerned, as the case may be,

and

(e) in any other case—

(i) be given not later than 6 weeks before the intended commencement of the parent’s leave,

(ii) indicate the expected date of commencement and duration of the parent’s leave, and

(iii) subject to subsection (4) include a copy of the medical, or other appropriate, certificate confirming the pregnancy of the expectant mother concerned and specifying the expected week of confinement of the expectant mother concerned that she has given to, or produced for the inspection of, her employer under section 9 of the Act of 1994 or a copy of the birth certificate issued to the child concerned, as the case may be.

(3) Where F5[paragraph (b) or(c)] of subsection (2) applies and the F5[the qualifying adopter concerned] concerned is not an employee, the relevant parent shall supply his or her employer with a copy of an applicable declaration of eligibility and suitability and, as soon as reasonably practicable after the day of placement, particulars in writing of the placement.

(4) Where subsection (2)(e) applies and the expectant mother concerned is not an employee, the relevant parent shall supply his or her employer with a statement signed by a registered medical practitioner confirming the pregnancy and expected week of confinement of the expectant mother concerned or a copy of the birth certificate issued to the child concerned.

(5) An employee who has not given a notification to his or her employer in accordance with subsection (2) or who having given such notification has revoked it under subsection (7) may notify the employer concerned (or cause the employer concerned to be so notified) of his or her intention to take parent’s leave not later than 6 weeks before the intended commencement of such leave and the notification under this subsection shall indicate the expected date of commencement and duration of the parent’s leave.