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Northern Ireland
If a woman takes shared parental leave (SPL), is she entitled to return to the same job when she returns to work between discontinuous blocks of leave?
Published on: 10/03/2023
Issues Covered:
Annual Leave & Holiday Pay
Article Authors The main content of this article was provided by the following authors.
Chris Fullerton Partner in the Employment Law Group, Arthur Cox LLP
Chris Fullerton Partner in the Employment Law Group, Arthur Cox LLP
Chris fullerton from arthur cox ni
LinkedIn

>Chris is a partner in the Employment Law Group of the Arthur Cox Belfast Office in Northern Ireland.

Chris has extensive experience dealing with both contentious and non-contentious employment law matters. Chris advises a range of employers on all aspects of employment law including executive appointments, severance, grievances, disciplinary issues and trade union matters. Chris has represented clients before the Industrial Tribunal, Fair Employment Tribunal and the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland in employment litigation such as unfair dismissal, equality/discrimination and whistleblowing. Chris’ practice area includes advisory work and corporate transactions.

If a woman takes shared parental leave (SPL), is she entitled to return to the same job when she returns to work between discontinuous blocks of leave?

Whilst shared parental leave (SPL) must be taken in complete weeks, it can be taken as one continuous period or in discontinuous periods.

When returning to work after a period of SPL (or any combination of SPL, Statutory Maternity Leave or Statutory Adoption Leave) of 26 weeks or less, the employee has a right to return to the same job and the same terms and conditions as if she hadn’t been away.

This also applies when your employee returns to work after a period of SPL of more than 26 weeks, unless you can show that it is not reasonably practicable for her to return to her original job (for example, because the job no longer exists). In this case, you must offer a suitable job on terms and conditions that are no less favourable.

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Disclaimer The information in this article is provided as part of Legal Island's Employment Law Hub. We regret we are not able to respond to requests for specific legal or HR queries and recommend that professional advice is obtained before relying on information supplied anywhere within this article. This article is correct at 10/03/2023
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