Social Welfare Act 2017
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PART 3 Amendments to other Acts | ||
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Amendment of Maternity Protection Act 1994 | ||
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16. The Maternity Protection Act 1994 is amended— | ||
(a) in section 2, by the insertion of the following definition: | ||
“ ‘premature birth period’ has the meaning assigned to it by the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 ;”, | ||
(b) in section 8 by the insertion of the following subsections after subsection (1): | ||
“(1A) Subject to this Part, a pregnant employee referred to in subsection (1) shall be entitled to a further period of maternity leave that is in addition to the minimum period of maternity leave referred to in paragraphs (a) or (b) of subsection (1), if, on or after 1 October 2017 the date of confinement occurs more than 2 weeks before the expected week of confinement. | ||
(1B) The duration of the further period of maternity leave referred to in subsection (1A) shall be equal to the duration of the premature birth period.”, | ||
(c) by the insertion of the following section after section 8: | ||
“Supplemental provisions relating to premature birth period | ||
8A. The further period of maternity leave referred to in section 8(1A) shall be without prejudice to sections 12, 14, 14A and 14B.”, | ||
(d) in section 13(2)— | ||
(i) in paragraph (a), by the insertion of “and a further period of maternity leave in respect of a date of confinement that occurred on or after 1 October 2017, the duration of which is equal to the duration of the premature birth period” after “26 consecutive weeks”, and | ||
(ii) in paragraph (b), by the insertion of “and a further period of maternity leave in respect of a date of confinement that occurred on or after 1 October 2017, the duration of which is equal to the duration of the premature birth period” after “26 weeks”, | ||
(e) by the insertion of the following section after section 13: | ||
“Additional provision for certain early confinement circumstances | ||
13A. Where, on or after 1 October 2017, the date of confinement of a pregnant employee occurs more than 2 weeks before the expected week of confinement but less than 4 weeks before that expected week, notwithstanding section 10(1), the minimum period of maternity leave for a pregnant employee other than a pregnant employee referred to in section 13(1) or 13(2), shall be a period of not less than— | ||
(a) 26 consecutive weeks and a further period of maternity leave the duration of which is equal to the duration of the premature birth period, or | ||
(b) 26 weeks and a further period of maternity leave the duration of which is equal to the duration of the premature birth period part of which is postponed in accordance with section 14B, | ||
and which commences on the date of confinement.”, | ||
(f) in section 14, by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (6): | ||
“(7) Where pursuant to section 8, a pregnant employee is entitled to a further period of leave referred to in subsection (1A) of that section, nothing in section 8, 13 or 13A shall operate to prevent the entitlement of the pregnant employee to additional maternity leave under this section.”, | ||
(g) in section 16, by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1): | ||
“(1A) Where— | ||
(a) on or after 1 October 2017, the date of confinement of a mother occurred more than 2 weeks before the expected week of confinement, and | ||
(b) the mother dies at any time on or before the expiry of the combined period, | ||
the father of the child (if he is employed under a contract of employment) shall be entitled in accordance with this section, and subject to subsection (10), to leave from his employment for a period, if the mother dies on or before the expiry of the combined period, ending at the end of the unexpired portion of that combined period.”, | ||
(h) in section 16(2), by the insertion in paragraph (a) of “or (1A)” after “leave under subsection (1)”, | ||
(i) in section 16(3), by— | ||
(i) the insertion of “or (1A)” after “the period of leave under subsection (1)”, and | ||
(ii) the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (a): | ||
“(aa) a period of leave which ends as mentioned in subsection (1A) is referred to as ‘subsection (1A) leave’,”, | ||
(j) in section 16(10)— | ||
(i) by the insertion of “or, as the case may be, under subsection (1A) to leave under that subsection” after “under subsection (1) to leave under that subsection”, | ||
(ii) by the insertion of a new paragraph (aa) after paragraph (a): | ||
“(aa) where the person is entitled to subsection (1A) leave, the leave shall commence immediately after the end of the paternity leave and, subject to section 16B, end at the end of the combined period following the end of the paternity leave;”, | ||
(iii) in paragraph (c)(i), by the substitution of “to which paragraph (a) applies,” for “to which paragraph (a) applies, and”, and | ||
(iv) in paragraph (c), by the insertion of a new subparagraph after subparagraph (i): | ||
“(ia) subsection (1A) leave shall be deemed to include a reference to a period of leave to which paragraph (aa) applies, and”, | ||
(k) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (10): | ||
“(11) In this section ‘combined period’ means a period comprising— | ||
(a) 42 weeks following the week of confinement, and | ||
(b) the duration of the premature birth period.”, | ||
(l) in section 16A(1), in paragraph (a) by the insertion of “or, as the case may be, subsection (1A) leave,” after “subsection (1)(a) leave,”, | ||
(m) in section 16B(1)— | ||
(i) in paragraph (a), by the insertion of “or his subsection (1A) leave or part of such leave” after “part of such leave”, and | ||
(ii) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (b): | ||
“(bb) his subsection (1A) leave or part of such leave,” | ||
and | ||
(n) in section 16B(3), in paragraph (c)(i), by the insertion of “or, as the case may be, subsection (1A) leave or the part of such leave” after “or the part of such leave”. |