On 5 March 2014, the government published three sets of draft regulations setting out the new rules that will apply to employees expecting a baby on or after 5 April 2015, or children placed for adoption on or after that date.
Eligible employees will be entitled to a maximum of 52 weeks’ leave and 39 weeks’ statutory pay upon the birth, or adoption of a child, which can be shared between parents.
Principles of Shared Parental Leave And Pay
The published draft regulations include details regarding:
- the entitlement to shared leave and pay;
- the mechanics of requesting and taking leave;
- terms and conditions during leave and on return from work;
- the position in a redundancy situation;
- the proposed changes in respect of keeping in touch days; and
- the protection from detriment and unfair dismissal when exercising these rights
Whilst the concept of shared parental leave is, to many, long overdue, the draft regulations are complex.
With over 70 pages of regulation to digest, the new system will no doubt be unwelcome to many employers and difficult for employers – especially small businesses – to administer in practice.
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