Plan ahead for parental leave changes, warns lawyer

Lancashire businesses are being warned not to get caught off guard by new rules coming in next month that will enable parents to share up to a year of leave after the birth or adoption of a child.

Under the ‘shared parental leave’ rules there will be 50 weeks available for shared leave after the initial two week maternity leave, including 37 weeks of shared parental pay. The rules apply to parents of babies whose expected week of child birth is on or after April 5, as well as parents of children placed for adoption on or after that date.

Roger said: “The new rules offer parents greater flexibility to care for their children, but they will make it harder for businesses to plan how they will cover longer periods of leave for both parents. The rules also throw up a whole host of issues about how employers deal with requests responsibly and to the letter of the law.

“Larger businesses with dedicated HR departments will arguably be more prepared to deal with these changes, but I fear that smaller businesses may be surprised at the implications and potential disruption to their business.”

Roger added: “The same rules that protect parents on maternity and paternity leave from the threat of redundancy and discrimination apply to shared parental leave. It is essential businesses seek early advice, so they don’t fall foul of the law.”

At-a glance: The new rules on shared parental leave

Who can take shared parental leave?

Do both parents have to be employees?

How will it work?

What will employees have to do?

What are the obligations for employers?