Can an employee use their Personal leave whilst on parental leave?

[Cottoneyes]

Originally Posted by Moz

Hey Snooze, thanks for letting us know what the FWA said



I didn't really understand that anyway. How can you be on two types of leave simultaneously?

Surely if you went on personal/carer's leave while on paid parental leave, the former replaces the latter.

Given the FWA response, the solution for the employee is easy. He simply applies for personal (carers) leave, and retracts any application for unpaid parental leave

Assuming there is no requirement for parental leave to be taken in one continuous block of time, which is a requirement under some policies and legislation (am going back 4 years now when a company I worked at had this in their industrial award, may have changed now) We used to have cases when employee as an example would try to take their parental leave November - mid December, take annual leave over the Christmas period to get 3 extra days paid as public holidays, and then continue with the unpaid parental leave

[HeyPete]

Originally Posted by Moz

Hey Snooze, thanks for letting us know what the FWA said



I didn't really understand that anyway. How can you be on two types of leave simultaneously?

Surely if you went on personal/carer's leave while on paid parental leave, the former replaces the latter.

Given the FWA response, the solution for the employee is easy. He simply applies for personal (carers) leave, and retracts any application for unpaid parental leave

Moz you can be on Parental Leave & Annual Leave simutaneously. S79(1) FWA

Theoretically you can take annual leave during the Christmas period, and be paid for the public holidays as well S98(1) FWA

and furthermore, during the paid Annual leave you can now apply for Paid Personal / Carers leave S89(2) FWA


It's open to interpretation.

[ER-Enthusiast]

Just for interest sake; an employee who is on Annual Leave and gets sick can then use their personal leave for the time they were unwell on annual leave, so this may mean annual leave being re credited to the employee!

My background with parental leave is generall complications pre birth that require medical teatment or doctors visits can be personal leave, as soon as that "parental leave" kicks in, generally, there is no entitlement for the employee to access personal leave.

In a simpler example, I had an employee that required caesarean who wanted to use her "personal leave" as she had a medical certificate indicating that she would be unfit for six weeks, therefore wanting to use personal leave, on an executive salary its not desirable for the employer to grant such leave and under the Act, the employee does not have such entitlement.

[Moz]

Originally Posted by ER-Enthusiast

In a simpler example, I had an employee that required caesarean who wanted to use her "personal leave" as she had a medical certificate indicating that she would be unfit for six weeks, therefore wanting to use personal leave, on an executive salary its not desirable for the employer to grant such leave and under the Act, the employee does not have such entitlement.

But your employee was the mother, so it's quite clear cut (no pun intended!). But what if it was the mother's spouse who wanted to take personal/carer's leave to look after the mother who's just had a C-section?

Who determines whether the mother's spouse is on un-paid parental leave, or paid personal/carer's leave?

[ER-Enthusiast]

Oh I agree, a lot easier when it is the Mother, however the way I view it, if the leave is attributed mainly because of the pregnancy or birth it wouldn't be personal leave, not in ALL circumstances, but most, mother or father.

The Act is designed to seperate parental leave from personal leave and has distinct, detailed protections, if an employee was able to use their personal leave whilst then the act would say so, as it does with LSL- Personal Leave, AL - Personal leave.

That is my view anyway.