Parental Leave Should be Announced 45 Days in Advance

The parliament has initiated the draft amendment of the Family Benefits Act, which will be merging the different types and benefits of the leave for parents and which will allow parents to combine work and family life in a more flexible manner. The amendments to be applied are positive, but in order to ensure better security for employers and also replacement employees, the time for advance notice of the leave for parents should be extended.

Today, an employee is required to notify the employer of going on parental leave or suspending the parental leave 14 days in advance. According to the draft, the term of advance notice for going on the leave for parents (current parental leave) or suspending the parental leave is 30 calendar days. The Chamber finds that the term for advance notice should be extended to 45 days. The longer term would ensure better security for entrepreneurs as well as replacement employees, allowing the employer as well as replacement employees to change their work and life arrangements. Furthermore, it would motivate the employee on parental leave to plan their activities with a longer perspective in mind.

Parents and employers have the possibility to agree on an advance notification term shorter than 45 days. This will ensure that the possibilities of a parent are not limited, especially in the current labour market condition with lack of labour force and employers ready to conclude flexible agreements.

The short advance notice period gives a better opportunity to abuse the parental leave regulation. An employee who is acting in bad faith may be on parental leave for one month and then work for month, while notifying the employer of such change only 30 days in advance. Such practice can be used for three years. Such situation would cause uncertainty and frustration.  

The Chamber finds that a longer advance notice period is a reasonable compromise that takes into account the interests of employers as well as replacement employees, but at the same time is not too restricting for a parent. Furthermore, at the time of the approval round of the draft, the draft included 45 calendar days as the term for advance notice of going on the leave for parents or suspending the parental leave.