The introduction of new employment rights for parents has been revealed today.
Minister for Children, Equality, Disability Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman, has announced details for new employment entitlements that are being brought in as part of the recently passed Work Life Balance Act 2023.
As part of the legislation, the entitlement to breastfeeding breaks will be extended from the current period of six months, which is a time that coincides with maternity leave, for up to two years.
As well as the extension of breastfeeding breaks, parents and carers will be entitled to a new right to unpaid leave for medical purposes.
Roderic O’Gorman confirmed that these provisions will come into effect next week, from July 3, 2023.
Making a statement about the introduction of these rights, the Minister said, “The Work Life Balance Act is about helping make sure that our work lives reflect the reality of our personal lives, particularly for parents and carers”.
“By extending breastfeeding breaks to two years after the birth of the child, we can support women returning to work after maternity leave to continue to breastfeed, in line with best practices from a public health perspective”.
“Normalising breastfeeding in the workplace is of benefit to mothers, babies and wider society”.
O’Gorman added, “The new right to leave for medical care purposes will give parents and carers access to a flexible short-term form of unpaid leave, providing certainty at difficult moments, should they need it”.
Many social media users were happy to hear about the new entitlements and took to Twitter to share their thoughts on the announcement.
One Twitter user wrote, "Keep up the good work", while a second penned, “This is such good legislation”.
