Changes to unpaid parental leave

There are some changes to the laws on unpaid parental leave that kick in on 6 June 2023, so now is a good time to update your parental leave policy, according to Sean Melbourne from professional services company Source.

The new laws deal with the situation where an employee taking 12 months of unpaid parental leave requests an extension of their leave, which they can do for a further period of up to 12 months (subject to rules around employee couples).

The new rules set out more detail on what an employer needs to do when they receive a request and the grounds on which an employer can refuse a request. They also give the Fair Work Commission stronger powers to resolve disputes about extension requests.

The rules are fairly detailed, so rather try to explain them I thought I’d offer you a copy of Source‘s parental leave policy template that incorporates the new rules.

The policy template has recently been updated by Source’s employment and safety law team and includes:

➡ the unpaid parental leave entitlements under the National Employment Standards;

➡ example paid parental leave provisions that can be used where an employer decides to offer paid parental leave; and

➡ reference to the paid parental leave scheme offered by the Australian Government.

If you’d like a copy email me at sean.melbourne@sourceservices.com.au and I’ll send you a Word version.