Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 16 July 2020
155. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the status of maternity leave for mothers; the costs of extending maternity leave as a temporary expedient while infant childcare options are so impaired due to Covid-19; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16377/20]
View answerAs the law now stands, a mother is entitled to paid maternity leave of up to 26 weeks, and up to a further 16 weeks of unpaid leave. Two weeks must be taken before the baby is due, and at least four weeks must be taken after the birth. Any amendment to the legislation governing the provision of maternity leave, which falls under my responsibility, would require primary legislation. As such an extension to maternity leave has not been proposed by Government, the total costs to the Exchequer, in particular if maternity benefit were also to be extended, have not been set out.
The provision of maternity benefit is under the remit of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection.
In recognition of the particular challenges that mothers and parents have faced during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Government is considering a proposal to advance the extension of Parent’s Leave and Benefit to five weeks for all parents of children born after 1 November 2019, to enable every eligible parent of young children to spend additional time with their child.
At present, Parent’s Leave entitles each parent to 2 weeks’ leave during the first year of a child’s life, or in the case of adoption, within one year of the placement of the child with the family.
The Government proposal would mean that eligible parents of children born during the pandemic crisis will get an extra three weeks of Parent’s Leave to offset the impact of having a child during the strict lockdown measures. The period in which Parent’s Leave can be taken will also be extended from one year to two years. This, and related costs, will be considered as part of the Budget 2021 process. The support is paid at a rate of €245 per week.
Parental leave is also available which entitles parents to take unpaid leave from work to spend time looking after their children. Parents can take up to 22 weeks of parental leave for each eligible child before their 12th birthday.
The Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS) was introduced under the Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Covid-19) Act 2020, to attempt to minimise the negative impact on the labour market through an exceptional period beginning on 26 March and scheduled to run for an initial period of 12 weeks.
On 3 June, the Government announced the TWSS would accommodate the salaries of parents returning from maternity or adoptive leave. This will be provided for by way of amendment in the Finance Bill 2020 process, and that in the meantime Revenue will implement the provision from 26 March, where applicable.
