Employee’s rights connected with parenthood

If you are a pregnant employee, you have special rights:

• the employer must not employ you overtime, at night, post you outside your permanent place of work without consent, or employ in the intermittent working time system,
• the employer is obliged to change your working time schedule for the period of your pregnancy, enable you to work outside the night time, transfer you to other work performed outside the night time, and in the absence of the abovementioned the possibility of releasing you from the obligation to perform work for the necessary time,
• the employer must take into account the request for remote work submitted by the pregnant employee, unless the form of work does not allow for the performance of duties remotely.

After the birth of your child, you are entitled to maternity leave.

• 20 weeks - one child per birth,
• 31 weeks - two children in one birth,
• 33 weeks - three children in one birth,
• 35 weeks - four children in one birth,
• 37 weeks - five or more children in one birth.

At least six weeks of maternity leave may fall before the expected date of birth

Additional Information

The employer cannot give you notice or terminate your employment contract during pregnancy, but also during maternity or parental leave, unless there are reasons justifying termination of the contract without notice through your fault and the enterprise trade union organization representing you has agreed to terminate the contract. The provision does not apply if you are employed for a trial period not exceeding one month.

Termination of the employment contract with you by the employer with notice during pregnancy, maternity or parental leave may only take place in the event of bankruptcy or permanent closure of the company.

If the employment contract was signed with you for a definite period of time or for a trial period exceeding one month and would be terminated after the third month of pregnancy, it will be extended until the date of birth. The provision does not apply if the contract with you has been signed for a definite period of time in order to replace an employee during his/her justified absence from work.

If you are a breastfeeding employee, you are entitled to two half-hour breaks for breastfeeding included in your working time. If you are brestfeeding more than one child, you are entitled to two breaks of 45 minutes each. Breastfeeding breaks may be granted jointly at your request. If you work less than four hours a day, you are not entitled to feeding breaks. If your working time does not exceed six hours a day, you are entitled to one break for feeding.

If you are an employee taking care of a child up to the age of 8, then until the child reaches this age, the employer cannot, without your consent, employ you in overtime, at night, in the intermittent working time system, as well as for post outside your permanent place of work.

As an employee raising at least one child under the age of 14, you are entitled to 16 hours or 2 days of leave from work during a calendar year, while retaining the right to remuneration. The method of using the exemption in a given calendar year is decided by the employee in the first application.

In addition, each employee has the right to take leave from work due to force majeure for 2 days or 16 hours in a calendar year, which may be granted in urgent family matters caused by illness or accident, if the employee's immediate presence is necessary. During the period of leave from work due to force majeure, the employee retains the right to remuneration in the amount of 50% of the remuneration.

Leave on the terms of maternity leave

An employee who has accepted a child for upbringing and has applied to the guardianship court to initiate proceedings for the adoption of a child, with the exception of a professional foster family, has the right to leave under the conditions of maternity leave in the amount of:

•     20 weeks – in the case of adopting one child,
•     31 weeks – if two children are admitted at the same time,
•     33 weeks – if three children are admitted at the same time,
•     35 weeks – if four children are admitted at the same time,
•     37 weeks – in the case of accepting five or more children at the same time,

- however, no longer than until the child is 14 years old.

The employee referred to above who takes for upbringing a child up to the age of 7, and in the case of a child with regard to whom a decision to postpone the schooling obligation was made, up to the age of 10, and the employee who took in a child up to the age of 14 - is entitled to 9 weeks of leave under the conditions of maternity leave.

Leave under the conditions of maternity leave is granted upon a written request of the employee, submitted within 7 days from the date of accepting the child for upbringing as a foster family or applying to the guardianship court with a request to initiate adoption proceedings. The leave begins on the date specified in the employee's application, but not later than 21 days from the date of adoption of the child for upbringing as a foster family or application to the guardianship court to initiate adoption proceedings. The employer is obliged to take into account the employee's request.

Parental leave

Straight after using maternity leave or leave on the terms of maternity leave, you are entitled to parental leave in the amount of:

•     41 weeks - in the case of having one child at one birth,
•     43 weeks – in the case of multiple births.

An employee who has taken a child for upbringing as a foster family, with the exception of a professional foster family, has the right to parental leave in order to take care of that child up to:

•     41 weeks - in the case of adopting one child,
•     43 weeks - in the case of adopting two or more children,
•     38 weeks – if the employee has taken in a child under the age of 7, and in the case of a child whose compulsory schooling has been postponed, up to the age of 10.

An employee who has taken a child for upbringing and has applied to the guardianship court for the initiation of adoption proceedings is entitled to parental leave in order to take care of that child up to:

    41 weeks - in the case of adopting one child,
    43 weeks - in the case of adopting two or more children,

- however, no longer than until the child is 14 years old.

An employee who has taken a child and applied to the guardianship court to initiate proceedings regarding the adoption of a child under the age of 14 is entitled to 38 weeks of parental leave.

Parental leave is granted once or in no more than 5 parts, not later than by the end of the calendar year in which the child to whom the application relates turns 6 years old.

16 weeks of parental leave may be granted on a date not directly following the previous part of this leave. The number of parts of the leave used in this mode reduces the number of parts of the parental leave due.

Important! Parental leave is granted jointly to both employees - parents of the child. Each of the parents' employees has the exclusive right to 9 weeks of parental leave, and this right cannot be transferred to the child's other parent.

An employee may combine the use of parental leave with the performance of work for the employer granting the leave in the amount not exceeding half of the full working time.

Employees who are parents of a child with a certificate stating a severe and irreversible disability or an incurable life-threatening disease, which arose in the prenatal period of the child's development or during childbirth, have the right to parental leave in order to take care of this child up to:

•     65 weeks – in the case of giving birth to one child at one birth,
•     67 weeks – in cases of multiple births.

Benefits during maternity leave, leave under the conditions of maternity leave and parental leave

For the period of maternity leave, a maternity allowance is payable in the amount of 100% of the allowance calculation basis.

For the entire period of parental leave, a maternity allowance is payable in the amount of 70% of the allowance calculation basis.

If the female employee submits an appropriate application no later than 21 days after giving birth, the monthly maternity allowance for the period of maternity (and parental) leave is 81.5% of the allowance calculation basis. The same is true if, no later than 21 days after accepting a child for upbringing and applying to the court for initiating adoption proceedings or after accepting a child for upbringing as a foster family, the employee submits an appropriate application for maternity allowance for the period of this leave will be 81.5% of the assessment basis.

An employee - the child's father, for the period of the non-transferable 9-week part of the leave, is entitled to an allowance in the amount of 70% of the allowance calculation basis.

Paternity leave

As an employee - a father raising a child, you have the right to paternity leave of 2 weeks.

Paternity leave can be used by you at any time, therefore also when the employee (mother of the child) is on maternity leave, as well as parental leave. The only restriction will be the age of the child. You can use the paternity leave until the child turns 12 months old or until the lapse of 12 months from the date of entry into force of the decision on the adoption of the child, and no longer than until the child turns 14.

Paternity leave is granted upon your written request submitted no later than seven days before the commencement of the use of such leave. The employer is obliged to consider such a request.

Paternity leave may be used once or in two parts, not shorter than a week. When granting paternity leave, a week of leave corresponds to seven calendar days.

For the period of paternity leave, you are entitled to a maternity allowance in the amount of 100% of the allowance calculation basis.

REMEMBER!

Labor law provides protection for women's work and a number of rights related to parenthood. It is worth knowing about them and using them.