Photo:
A planned change to parental leave settings should give non-biological parents more flexibility, Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says.
The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill passed its first reading on Wednesday morning.
It includes a change that will help people who have taken on the care of a child unexpectedly, clarifying that they can stop work within a reasonable period of becoming the primary carer of a child under the age of six.
Currently, van Velden said people had to stop working when they became a primary carer to be able to access paid parental leave.
"For example, a man and his partner were informally looking after a child and when final parenting orders were made, he resigned from his job to be the primary carer for the child and gave his six weeks' notice," she said.
"This man was declined parental leave payments because he did not take parental leave, or stop working, from the date he became the child's primary carer.
"This is a small, technical change that will make a huge impact on affected Kiwi families and diverse parenting arrangements such as caring for extended family. This change can be made now to improve the scheme and remove unnecessary and unintended stress for people who find themselves in this situation."
Parents can receive payments that match their regular income, up to a maximum of $754.87 before tax.
Payments last for six months but stop if the person returns to work before that time or stops being the primary carer for the child.
The bill also clarifies payments for a pre-term baby are in addition to normal paid parental leave entitlements, and makes other changes to health and safety law, including clarifying the requirements for the highest-risk industries to notify WorkSafe about the failure of safety critical equipment or processes.
