Having a baby – no longer a career choice?

Thursday 5 December 2013

In February 2013, the Government invited views on how the system for shared parental leave (and pay) should operate. Changes had been delayed after Conservative ministers urged the Liberal Democrats to make proposals more business-friendly.

On 29 November 2013 the Government responded to its Consultation on the Administration of Shared Parental Leave and Pay. The policy is being introduced under Part 6 of the Children and Families Bill which is currently going through Parliament. The Government is preparing the secondary legislation which it intends to publish in draft before the Bill receives Royal Assent in April 2015.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: “Women deserve the right to pursue their goals and not feel they have to choose having a successful career or having a baby. They should be supported by their employers, rather than being made to feel less employable or under pressure to take unchallenging jobs. It is already illegal to sack a woman because she is pregnant or on maternity leave, but we want to go further than that. We want to create a fairer society that gives parents the flexibility to choose how they share care for their child in the first year after birth.”

It appears that the Government has made a step in the right direction for families who want to experience their child’s first smile or first steps. Shared parental leave will allow eligible mothers and their partners to be absent from work to care for a child for a maximum of 52 weeks. Eligible couples could also take up to 39 weeks of shared parental pay. A couple will be able to take the leave together so that the mother will not necessarily return to work after compulsory maternity leave. Alternatively, the mother could return to work and allow her partner to take the balance of leave, or the couple could take the leave in turns.

However the new reforms could be an administrative nightmare for employers who will need to ensure they have a good working relationship with parents coming and going from work.

Employees will have to give notice to their employers of their intention to opt into the shared parental system. In doing so, employees will have to provide a non-binding indication of their expected pattern of leave.

An employee is restricted to changing their leave plans to three times – the employer is obliged to accept these absences from an employee. The three notifications cap will count the original notification and two further notifications or changes. This will mean that an employer does not have to accept any more than three notifications to take shared parental leave on specific dates or changes to dates already agreed. This limitation is to presumably avoid the administrative nightmare where a parent would leave and then return numerous times over the 52 week period.

Changes due in April 2015

• Shared parental leave will allow eligible mothers and their partners to be absent from work to care for a child for a maximum of 52 weeks.
• Eligible couples could also take up to 39 weeks of shared parental pay.
• Employees will have to give notice to their employers of their intention to opt into the shared parental system.
• Employees will have to provide eight weeks of notice of their intention to take any period of leave. This will include a two week discussion period with their employer.
• Each person in a couple will have up to 20 ‘Keeping in Touch Days’ while on shared parental leave.
• A notice to start shared parental leave will be binding when given prior to birth. A mother will have six weeks from birth to revoke this binding notice.

Will you still have your job upon return? 

Yes – an employee returning from maternity leave is entitled to return to the same job under the same conditions and the same terms. The right to return to the same job will be maintained for employees returning from any period of leave (including maternity leave, paternity leave, adoption leave and shared parental leave).

Business Minister Jo Swinson said: “Thanks to extensive discussions with business and family groups we have found a workable approach to shared parental leave. Getting the detail right is crucial if shared parental leave is to drive a real cultural shift and help working dads play a greater role in their child’s early months.”

The Government has asked ACAS to produce a code of practice to help businesses manage this new extended right. ACAS will also produce a non statutory good practice guide with practical examples of managing this in the workplace. This will be published alongside the final Code early next year. The balancing of new parent’s rights and business efficacy may prove difficult, but if the new provisions work, their success should be well worth the effort for new families.

Should you require advice regarding shared parental leave, either from an employer’s or employee’s perspective, please do not hesitate to contact the Employment team on 0113 207 0000.

Related articles

• Parents ‘to share childcare leave’ (bbc.co.uk)