Paternity
Leave is the unpaid leave granted to the male employee on the birth of his
child in ireland. The Paternity Leave is for a maximum of ten (10) days off linked to the
birth of the father’s child. The leave should be taken within 26 weeks of the
birth of the child.
Please note that if the company contributes towards a Maternity Leave payments than on the grounds of gender equality they should also contribute towards Paternity Leave.
The
father can claim a Paternity Benefit from the Department of Social Protection
at a rate of €230 per week. This benefit is similar to the Maternity Benefits
and the employee needs to have built up 39 weeks of PRSI contributions. The
father should give the company four (4) weeks notice in writing before taking
the leave. However if there are premature births the notice period can be
shortened.
The
father needs to fill out the Paternity Leave form four weeks before the
requested Paternity Leave and the form needs to be handed in to the company. The
Paternity Leave benefit is also available for a father adopting a child and
same sex couples adopting a child. During
the Paternity Leave the employee will continue to build up his normal
entitlements and his build up for holiday entitlements will also continue. Part-time
employees are entitled to Paternity Leave on a pro-rata basis. Please
note that the employee can be asked to provide the childbirth certificate.
