Appendix 6 – Parental Leave Policy
If you are the parent/adoptive parent of a child or have or expect to have parental responsibility for a child, provided you have 1 year’s continuous service with Tracklements, you are entitled to take up to 18 weeks’ unpaid ordinary parental leave for the purpose of caring for a child, up to the child’s 18th birthday.
You are entitled to unpaid parental leave of a maximum of 18 weeks for each child. You may not take more than four weeks’ leave in respect of an individual child during a particular year. You have the right to return to the same job or (if more than four weeks’ leave is taken) to a similar job with the same or better terms and conditions.
Before Taking Parental Leave
As soon as practicable after you have notified your Manager that you intend to take parental leave, arrangements will be made for you to have an informal interview, the purpose of which is to confirm that:
you understand your rights to parental leave and the requirements to give appropriate notice (see below);
the right to return to work is explained, together with any potential opportunities for flexible working;
arrangements for time off are known, and any possible health and safety concerns are discussed;
you are aware that the leave from work is unpaid.
During Parental Leave
Arrangements will be made for cover of your workload, and you will be kept in touch with any important work developments. The Company will also ensure that you remain on circulation lists for internal memoranda and will be included in invitations to work-related social events.
We will try to ensure that parental leave does not cause any long‑term disadvantage to you concerning your training needs and self‑development.
You are bound during the parental leave period by your implied obligation to the Company of good faith and specific terms relating to:
notice;
disclosure of confidential information;
whether you are participating in any other business.
The disciplinary and grievance procedures continue to apply, as does any entitlement to compensation for redundancy.
Leave must be taken in a minimum of 1 week blocks (except for where a child is disabled then leave may be taken as single days or multiples of 1 day) and is limited to a maximum of 4 weeks in any year for each child.
Notice
Once you have given us notice of your intention to take parental leave, you must comply with any request to produce evidence of your entitlement.
The notice given must specify your intention to take parental leave and the dates on which the period of leave is to begin and end.
Notice must be given 21 days before the date on which the leave is to begin.
If the operation of the business will be unduly disrupted by the parental leave, it may be postponed if absolutely necessary.
You are not entitled to parental leave unless you have complied with the request to produce evidence of your entitlement. In certain circumstances, the Company are entitled to postpone a period of parental leave.
The type of evidence that the Company may request you should show:
your responsibility or expected responsibility for the child in respect of whom you propose to take parental leave and
the child’s date of birth, or in the case of a child who was placed with you for adoption, the date on which the placement began.
No request will be made by the Company unless it is reasonable.
Returning To Work
If the period of leave is four weeks or less, you have the right to return to the same job. If the period is more than four weeks (because it followed on from other statutory leave), then the right is to return to the same job. If that is not practicable, you have the right to return to a similar job which has the same or better status, terms and conditions as the old job.
If you are entitled to return to the same job, that means a right to return with the seniority, pension rights and similar rights, and on terms and conditions not less favourable than those which would have been applied if you had not been absent.
You will not to be subjected to any detriment by the Company for taking or requesting parental leave.