Parent's leave legislation excludes common sense provision

Ibec is deeply concerned at the exclusion of a key safeguard for employers and employees in the new legislation which introduces two weeks’ paid parent’s leave.  The absent provision, which allows employees to be returned to a suitable alternative role on similar terms and conditions where their own role no longer exists or where the employee wishes to adapt their role on return to the workplace, is standard.  It reflects the fact that organisations are sometimes forced to adapt to changing circumstances within a short time frame. 
 
The new parent’s leave, while short in duration, will often be added to almost a year of maternity leave.  The manner in which the new law has been drafted will place employers in potential breach of the legislation through circumstances outside of their control, if they lose a key client or are required to close a particular operation in advance of the employee’s return to work.  The exclusion of the provision is symptomatic of the lack of balance which has beset employment regulation in recent years.  Ibec urges law makers to consider more carefully the impact of Irish law on employers who are the engine of the Irish economy.