Maternity leave sought for fathers

Press, 6 December 1979, Page 6

Maternity leave sought for fathers

PA Wellington I Fathers as well as mothers should be given unpaid 'leave from work so that they could share the upbringing of their young children, the Labour member for Avon (Mrs Mary Batchelor) told Parliament yesterday. She was speaking during the introduction of the Maternity Leave and Employment Protection Bill, which allows women who want to remain in the work-force while having a family to take six months unpaid maternity leave with job protection. The provision applies only I to women who have remain- ' ed with an employer for at; least two years on a con-! tract requiring her to work' at least 35 hours a week. The bill was introduced by the Minister of Labour (Mr Bolger) and was referred to the Labour and Education ; select committee. The Government’s spokesman on women, Mr McLay, ;said he welcomed the bill because it recognised the reality of women in the work-force and because it was designed to enhance the family unit. But. Mrs Batchelor said she would be happier with' the bill if Parliament could i

ti ensure that assistance w?.« I given, recognising families’ - needs and considering what I was best for the child. ti “Surely we should also be e I emphasising family sharing, '.enabling fathers also to have r leave so that they can care -for young children,” she • 'said. I The bill also applies in [ cases of adoption where the • child is under a year old'at • the date of placement. i Mr Bolger said the bill >i prohibited an employer from ilending a woman’s work “by II reason of her pregnancy, or ■Sher state of health during ■ her pregnancy, or on her request for maternity leave, lor during her absence on maternity leave.” But an employer did not (have to keep a woman’s job ■open “where the nature or ■location of the industry, or the training period, or skills, required in the job, or the occurrence of a redundancy situation are such that a female employee’s appointment cannot be protected by holding the position open and a temporary replacement is not reasonably practicable.” In such cases the affected woman was to be offered preference for any reasonably comparable position 1 available within six months after her leave had ended.