Work and families
The Employment Act 2002 and associated regulations cover maternity and paternity rights, rights to adoption leave and pay, and rights for parents to request flexible working hours.
The Government is now consulting on new proposals, including:
- extending statutory maternity and adoption pay from six months to nine, as a step towards the goal of twelve months paid leave by the end of the next Parliament
- proposals to extend the notice period mothers give when preparing to return to work
- measures to improve dialogue between employers and employees both before and during maternity leave
- proposals to provide more help women return to the labour market after a longer period of time out caring for their children
- a new law to enable mothers to transfer a proportion of their maternity leave to fathers
- extending the scope of the right for parents of young and disabled children to request flexible working to cover carers of adult relatives and parents of older children.
For more information, please see the Department of Trade and Industry website at www.dti.gov.uk.
