|
paid parental leave (PPL)
and baby loss in aotearoa nz |
New Zealand’s Paid Parental Leave legislation has recognised pregnancy and baby loss from the beginning of the paid scheme. The protection has remained in the legislation as Paid Parental Leave has expanded from 12 weeks in 2002 to 26 weeks today.
Importantly, the current legislation does not specify a minimum gestational age nor does it exclude termination of pregnancy for the purposes of Paid Parental Leave.
And of course, the bereaved parent must meet the criteria in regards to employment ...
You must have worked for at least an average of 10 hours per week for at least any 26 of the 52 weeks up to your due date. This can be for one employer or a combination of employers even if there were periods where you did not work. This also applies if you are self-employed – again for at least an average of 10 hours per week for at least any 26 of the 52 weeks of a year.
Importantly, the current legislation does not specify a minimum gestational age nor does it exclude termination of pregnancy for the purposes of Paid Parental Leave.
And of course, the bereaved parent must meet the criteria in regards to employment ...
You must have worked for at least an average of 10 hours per week for at least any 26 of the 52 weeks up to your due date. This can be for one employer or a combination of employers even if there were periods where you did not work. This also applies if you are self-employed – again for at least an average of 10 hours per week for at least any 26 of the 52 weeks of a year.
History
New Zealand has a long history of recognising pregnancy and baby loss within maternity and parental leave legislation. As far back as the Maternity Leave and Employment Protection Act 1980, the law specifically recognised miscarriage, stillbirth and the death of a baby. Importantly, experiencing a loss did not automatically bring a woman's maternity leave to an end. Instead, the legislation allowed her to choose to return to work early following a miscarriage, stillbirth or the death of her baby.
This approach continued under the Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987 and, when Paid Parental Leave (PPL) was introduced in 2002, Parliament specifically protected the paid entitlement following miscarriage or the death of a baby. When introducing the new PPL scheme in 2001, Associate Minister of Labour Laila Harré publicly explained that:
“Payments will be made fortnightly, and the payment will continue until the mother returns to work even where a baby is miscarried, dies or is given for adoption.”
The legislation enacted in 2002 reflected this intention. It expressly provided for PPL payments to continue even when parental leave ended early because “the employee has a miscarriage” or “the employee or the child dies.”
Significantly, no gestational threshold was included in that provision.
Over the following two decades, Paid Parental Leave increased from 12 weeks to 14 weeks, then 16 and 18 weeks, 22 weeks and ultimately 26 weeks. Throughout those changes, protection following miscarriage and the death of a baby was retained.
New Zealand has a long history of recognising pregnancy and baby loss within maternity and parental leave legislation. As far back as the Maternity Leave and Employment Protection Act 1980, the law specifically recognised miscarriage, stillbirth and the death of a baby. Importantly, experiencing a loss did not automatically bring a woman's maternity leave to an end. Instead, the legislation allowed her to choose to return to work early following a miscarriage, stillbirth or the death of her baby.
This approach continued under the Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987 and, when Paid Parental Leave (PPL) was introduced in 2002, Parliament specifically protected the paid entitlement following miscarriage or the death of a baby. When introducing the new PPL scheme in 2001, Associate Minister of Labour Laila Harré publicly explained that:
“Payments will be made fortnightly, and the payment will continue until the mother returns to work even where a baby is miscarried, dies or is given for adoption.”
The legislation enacted in 2002 reflected this intention. It expressly provided for PPL payments to continue even when parental leave ended early because “the employee has a miscarriage” or “the employee or the child dies.”
Significantly, no gestational threshold was included in that provision.
Over the following two decades, Paid Parental Leave increased from 12 weeks to 14 weeks, then 16 and 18 weeks, 22 weeks and ultimately 26 weeks. Throughout those changes, protection following miscarriage and the death of a baby was retained.
Information from the IRD website
Information from Employment NZ website
Termination of pregnancy
Neither the Parental Leave and Employment Protection (Paid Parental Leave) Amendment Act 2002, nor the material announcing the Bill, uses any language stating that miscarriage excludes an induced termination/abortion.
When Parliament debated the Holidays (Bereavement Leave for Miscarriage) Amendment legislation in 2021, MPs explicitly discussed the distinction between miscarriage and abortion. The parliamentary record says that the legislation covered the unplanned end of a pregnancy and specifically excluded a planned ending of pregnancy. This applies to Bereavement Leave only.
Neither the Parental Leave and Employment Protection (Paid Parental Leave) Amendment Act 2002, nor the material announcing the Bill, uses any language stating that miscarriage excludes an induced termination/abortion.
When Parliament debated the Holidays (Bereavement Leave for Miscarriage) Amendment legislation in 2021, MPs explicitly discussed the distinction between miscarriage and abortion. The parliamentary record says that the legislation covered the unplanned end of a pregnancy and specifically excluded a planned ending of pregnancy. This applies to Bereavement Leave only.
