Parental leave
Many men and women are able to take time off work, without having to resign to care for their newborn or newly adopted child. Parental leave covers maternity leave (for women), paternity leave (for men) and adoption leave.
The parental leave provisions apply to permanent full-time, part-time and eligible casuals employees who have had at least 12 months of continuous service with their current employer.
Parental leave entitlements
Eligibility criteria
Paid parental leave
Examples of parental leave initiatives
Federal Government Support for Parents
Parental leave entitlements
The parental leave provisions include:
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up to 52 weeks of unpaid parental leave (including maternity, paternity and adoption leave) for parents to take on a shared basis to care for their newborn child or newly adopted child under the age of five years. Other than one week at the time of the birth (or three weeks in the case of adoption), both parents cannot be on parental leave at the same time;
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special maternity leave of an amount as recommended by a registered medical practitioner for a pregnancy related illness or in the event that the pregnancy ends other than by a live birth;
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a period of short paternity leave for male employees of one week taken within the week his spouse gives birth;
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the right to transfer to a safe job if, in the opinion of a registered medical practitioner, a female employee is unable to continue in her present position because of illness or risks arising out of her pregnancy or hazards connected with that position. If it is not reasonably practicable to transfer the employee to a safe job, then the employee is entitled to take paid leave (or may be directed by the employer to take paid leave) until the earliest of the end of the period stated in the medical certificate or the date of birth. Such paid leave does not reduce the total period of parental leave;
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in the case of adoption, up to two days of unpaid pre-adoption leave to attend any interviews or examinations required to obtain approval for the adoption unless the employee can take other authorised leave for such purposes.
If an employee takes parental leave, they are entitled to:
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return to the position the employee held immediately before the start of parental leave or a position that has the same terms and conditions of employment as the former position;
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take other leave (for example, annual leave) for the birth or adoption of the child in combination with parental leave. The 52 weeks of unpaid parental leave is reduced by other related authorised leave taken by the employee and by the amount of any paid or unpaid parental leave taken by the employee’s spouse;
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extend parental leave once within the 52 week period, provided 14 days' written notice is given to their employer. Any other extension within or after the 52 week period is at their employer's discretion; and
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vary or shorten partental leave, but generally only with the employer's agreement, by giving at least four weeks notice to their employer.
A woman may start a period of maternity leave at any time within the six week period immediately before the expected date of birth. Where she continues to work within that period, she may be required to provide a medical certificate stating whether she is fit to work in her present position.
If a woman takes maternity leave, she is required to take at least six weeks leave after the birth of the child and to take all leave associated with the child’s birth in a continuous, unbroken period of leave.
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Eligibility Criteria
To apply for parental leave, an employee is required to have completed at least 12 months of continuous service with their employer by the expected date of birth.
In addition, the employee must:
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provide a medical certificate from a medical practitioner to their employer no later than 10 weeks before the expected date of birth (where possible);
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apply formally for parental leave by providing a written application stating the dates for leave four weeks before the first day of the intended leave. The employee's spouse must give their employers a written application stating the dates of the leave and must give 10 weeks notice.
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provide their employer with a signed statutory declaration detailing their leave periods and their partner’s leave arrangements, as well as stating that they will be the child's primary care-giver and that they will not do other work inconsistent with their employment while on parental leave.
Casual employees
The entitlement to parental leave is extended to eligible casual employees. An eligible casual employee is defined as a casual employee who has worked on a regular and systematic basis for at least 12 months (or a sequence of periods totalling at least 12 months) with the same employer and has a reasonable expectation of continuing employment by the employer (other than the period of parental leave).
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Paid Parental Leave
A growing number of organisations are using paid parental leave as a means of encouraging women to return to work after maternity leave. It is increasingly being seen as a cost-effective means of attracting and retaining skilled staff.
Agreement making enables paid maternity leave and other family friendly working arrangements to be negotiated at the workplace level where they are a priority for employees. There is sound evidence that agreements are producing family friendly working arrangements that provide considerable flexibility for working parents. As at 31 December 2005:
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approximately 88 per cent of all federal certified agreements covering 95 per cent of employees contain at least one family friendly or flexible hours provision; and
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thirteen per cent of federal certified agreements, covering 46 per cent of women under federal certified agreements provided an entitlement to paid maternity leave.
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Examples of parental leave initiatives
The Australian Federal Police provides 14 weeks of paid maternity leave and a 'keep in touch' scheme for staff on parental or other extended leave.
Shell Australia provides six weeks of paid maternity leave and six weeks of paid parental leave for the primary care giver. The leave can be combined for a total of 12 weeks of leave. A further 52 weeks of unpaid leave for family reasons can be taken after parental or maternity leave, which provides two years of leave.
The University of South Australia provides 22 weeks of paid maternity leave which can be taken at half pay for 44 weeks. In addition to parental leave, employees can take 52 weeks of unpaid leave to raise children to the age of six years and can apply for an extension of this time.
Employees of ANZ Banking Group can take 12 weeks of paid parental leave. They also can take paid sick leave to attend prenatal classes and are able to utilise a nursing mothers' room.
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Federal Government Support for Parents
The federal Government provides a range of support for new parents. For more information, visit the Family Assistance Office.
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