Managing the practicalities and the emotions involved when a staff member has a premature or sick baby can be very difficult indeed. So will new laws on the right to neonatal care leave provide some much-needed assistance?
This new employment right is aimed at providing parents of new babies with the right to take additional paid leave in circumstances where their child requires neonatal care. As government minister, Justin Madders, puts it:
“Parents of children in neonatal care have more than enough to worry about without being concerned about how much annual leave they have left or whether they’ll be able to make ends meet.”
The Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act will give parents a guaranteed right to a minimum level of leave (and potentially pay) when they need to take time off.
Subject to final parliamentary approval, in relation to babies born on or after 6 April 2025, all employees from their first day of employment will have the right to take up to 12 weeks’ leave in circumstances where:
1. Their baby has been admitted into neonatal care within 28 days of their birth; and
2. They are in hospital for a continuous period of at least 7 full days.
This leave can be taken in addition to any other leave, including statutory maternity and paternity leave.
Employees on nenonatal care leave will not be entitled to their normal pay during their period of leave. However, they may be entitled to statutory neonatal care pay if:
• They have been employed for a continuous period of at least 26 weeks ending with the ‘relevant week’; and
• In the 8-week period ending with the ‘relevant week’, they earned at least the ‘lower earnings limit’ for National Insurance purposes (currently, £123 per week).
Most commonly, the ‘relevant week’ will be the 15th week before the expected week of childbirth. However, the situation will be different in cases of adoption.
Employers should note that if an employee is dismissed because they take (or seek to take) neonatal care leave, the dismissal will be automatically unfair. It will also be unlawful to subject employees to any other detriment.
Employers should be proactively reviewing their policies and procedures, to make sure they are ready for the new laws. If you need a helping hand, please get in touch.
James qualified as a solicitor in 2001, having completed his academic studies at the University of Sheffield. Throughout his career, he has worked for a number of prestigious regional law firms, joining stevensdrake as Head of Employment Law in 2012.
As well as pursuing and defending the full range of Employment Tribunal claims, James spends a considerable amount of his time providing advice and support to businesses of various sizes. He advises on a wide variety of HR and employment law issues, including employment contracts, HR processes and procedures, grievances, disciplinary issues, absenteeism, performance management and settlement agreements. He also regularly helps clients with redundancy exercises and internal reorganisations.
James has previously been described as an ‘Associate to Watch’ by Chambers UK, an independent guide to the legal profession. His clients regard him as “thorough”, “easy to work with” and someone who avoids blinding them with legal jargon.
Outside of work, James balances family life with ambitions of swimming, running and cycling a bit faster.
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