Furthermore, it is now possible to take leave for a child with a long term illness or disability until that child reaches 16 years or the disability or long term illness ends, whichever occurs first. Under the current legislation parental leave must be taken before a child reaches 8 years old.
Finally, and very importantly, under the new regulations a parent now has the right to request a change in their working hours/patterns for a set period of time after returning from parental leave. Although an employer must consider the request by an employee, an employer is not required to automatically grant the request. There are certain rules that must be followed in that the request for a change in working hours/working pattern must be made at least 6 weeks before the commencement of the proposed change in working hours/working pattern.
The employer must within 4 weeks of receiving the request either inform the employee in writing that the request has been refused or make an arrangement to sign an Agreement confirming the new changes. This Agreement should include the commencement date of the proposed changes and duration of the change in working arrangements.
If you have any queries in relation to Parental Leave or any other employment matter, one of our employment Solicitors would be delighted to assist you.
You can contact our employment Solicitors by telephone on 021 437444 or directly by email at freda.brennan@arw.ie and colm.orourke@arw.ie
