Paternity Leave and Benefit Act 2016

• Permanent Page URL

Entitlement of employed surviving parent to leave on death of relevant parent

15. (1) Where a relevant parent entitled to paternity leave in relation to a child dies before the expiry of the twenty-eighth week following the date of confinement or day of placement, as the case may be, the employed surviving parent of the child shall be entitled to leave (in this section referred to as “transferred paternity leave”) from his or her employment, to enable him or her to provide, or assist in the provision of, care to the child, for—

(a) where the relevant parent was an employee, a period of 2 weeks or, if applicable, such shorter period of paternity leave that remained to be taken by the relevant parent under this Act at the time of his or her death, and

(b) in all other cases, a period of 2 weeks.

(2) A period of transferred paternity leave shall commence—

(a) in the case of a surviving parent entitled to maternity leave under the Act of 1994, immediately after the end of the maternity leave concerned,

(b) in the case of a surviving parent entitled to adoptive leave under section 6 of the Act of 1995, immediately after the end of the adoptive leave concerned, or

(c) in any other case, within 7 days of the death of the relevant parent concerned or, where applicable, on the day of placement, whichever is the later.

(3) Entitlement to transferred paternity leave shall be subject to the surviving parent concerned—

(a) notifying his or her employer in writing (or causing his or her employer to be so notified) not later than the day on which the transferred paternity leave begins of—

(i) the death of the relevant parent,

(ii) his or her intention to take transferred paternity leave, and

(iii) the length of the leave to which he or she believes he or she is so entitled under this Act,

and

(b) if requested by his or her employer, causing his or her employer to be supplied, as soon as reasonably practicable, with a copy of the death certificate made in respect of the relevant parent.

(4) A notification under subsection (3) may be revoked by a further notification in writing given by or on behalf of the surviving parent concerned to his or her employer within the period specified in that subsection for the giving of the notification concerned.

(5) A reference in subsection (1) to a relevant parent entitled to paternity leave includes a reference to a relevant parent who would be so entitled but for the fact that he or she did not notify his or her employer in accordance with subsection (2) or (5) of section 7 , as the case may be.

(6) Subject to subsection (7), sections 11 and 12 shall apply to a surviving parent who is entitled to, or is on, transferred paternity leave as they apply to a relevant parent who is entitled to, or is on, paternity leave and a reference in those sections to notification by a relevant parent to his or her employer in accordance with subsection (2) or (5) of section 7 , section 13 (2) or 14 (2), as the case may be, shall be construed as including a reference to notification by a surviving parent under subsection (3)(a).

(7) Where section 11 (1) applies to a surviving parent who is on transferred paternity leave, then, notwithstanding section 11 (3), the period of postponed leave shall commence not later than 7 days after the surviving parent is no longer sick or on such other date as may be agreed between the surviving parent and the employer.