Parents of recently-born babies or young adopted children will be entitled to claim 14 weeks parental leave for each child born or adopted after June 3rd, according to new legislation which comes into effect tomorrow.
The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Mr O'Donoghue, said a principal objective of the Parental Leave Act, which implements an EU directive, would be "the promotion of reconciliation of work and family life and of equal opportunities and equal treatment between men and women."
Under it, parental leave can be taken as a continuous block or, by agreement between employers and employees, in individual weeks, days or even hours. An employee must give at least six weeks written notice of intention to take it.
The leave must be taken before a child is five, or in the case of an adopted child aged three to eight, within two years of the adoption order.
It will be unpaid, unlike in eight other EU countries. Mr O'Donoghue said paid parental leave could affect Ireland's competitive position, noting that if 14 weeks was paid at the level of current maternity benefits it could cost £40 million per year in social welfare benefits.
Each parent will have separate entitlement to parental leave, but it is not transferable between mother and father.
The legislation also allows employees to take three days annual paid leave (up to a maximum of five days every three years), known as force majeure leave, to enable them to deal with emergencies resulting from injury or illness to a close family member. Ms Rosaleen Glackin, the ICTU's equality officer, welcomed the legislation but said the trade unions had pushed for paid parental leave. If this had been paid for the first four weeks - as a first phase - it would have only cost £12 million a year. IBEC expressed concern that the provision for paid force majeure leave could lead to abuse and "impose considerable costs on employers."