What you need to know about the new paid parental leave policy
Did you hear the news?
This week, the Senate passed the Paid Parental Leave Amendment (Improvements for Families and Gender Equality) Bill 2022 which will support women’s workforce participation and help more dads and partners to take time off work to be with their children.
The Bill gives more families access to the payment, gives parents increased flexibility in how they take leave and encourages parents to share caring responsibilities to promote gender equality.
Here’s what you need to know:
The changes will make it easier for parents to claim Parental Leave Pay, with either parent able to claim first. Parents will also be able to access the entitlement in multiple blocks, as small as one day, with periods of work in between.
The changes will come into effect for parents whose children are born or adopted from 1 July 2023.
Single parents will now be able to receive the full 20-week entitlement, up from 18 weeks currently.
Parents can pre-claim up to three months before the expected date of birth or adoption so there is no delay in receiving payment. Pre-claims under the improved scheme will be open from the end of March.
A new family income test of $350,000 per annum will also see nearly 3000 additional parents become eligible for the entitlement.
Employers will benefit from the increased flexibility for employees to balance work and care, and they will not face any new regulatory burden when administering the payment to their staff.
While there is still a long way to go in comparison to International Standards, it’s great to see action being taken. Let us know on socials how this will affect you!