Family Responsibilities
Paternity Leave
The Employment Act provides for two weeks/14 working days of paid paternity leave. Written notice is not required to proceed on paternity leave, but the employer may ask for it.
Source: § 29(8) of the Employment Act 2007
Parental Leave
There is no provision in the law on paid or unpaid parental leave.
However, the Employment (Amendment) Act, 2021, differs from the suggestions made in the Employment (Amendment) Bill, 2019 (the Bill), which recommended that a female married employee be entitled to 3 months of pre-adoption leave from the date of the child's placement and a male married employee be entitled to 2 weeks. The Act no longer qualifies pre-adoption leave based on gender or marital status, and it has also reduced the pre-adoption leave period from three and two weeks to one month for both male and female employees, regardless of marital status.
The employee should notify the employer in writing about the intention of the adoption society to place the child in the custody of the employee at least 14 days before the adoption of the child. It should also include the custody agreement between the adoption society and employee and an exit certificate. The exit certificate is a written authority given by a registered adoption society to a prospective adoptive parent to take the child from the custody of the adoptive society.
Source: §29A of the Employment Act 2007, last amended in 2024
Flexible Work Option for Parents / Work-Life Balance
No provisions could be located in the law supporting work-life balance for parents or workers with family responsibilities.
Regulations on Family Responsibilities
- Employment Act, 2007