Poland: New Regulation on Additional Maternity Leave for Parents of Premature Babies and Parents of Babies Requiring Extended Hospitalisation After Birth Came into Force on 19th March
The new amendment to the Labour Code includes a new parental right for parents and caregivers of babies born prematurely and babies requiring extended hospitalisation after birth. Upon their request, the parents or caregivers shall be granted an additional maternity leave up to 8 or up to 15 weeks, respectively (depending on the medical condition of the baby and the length of their hospital stay).
The amendment introduced an additional parental right – an additional maternity leave for parents whose child is born prematurely or requires an extended stay in the hospital up to 8 or up to 15 weeks.
Additional maternity leave will be available in one part, immediately after the “basic” maternity leave. The additional leave will be granted upon employee’s request, meaning that it will be the parents themselves who will decide whether they want to use it. The new entitlement will also cover adoptive parents and foster families.
Maternity benefit for the period of additional maternity leave will be 100% of the benefit base.
The amount of additional maternity leave will depend on the period of hospitalisation of the child, the week of pregnancy in which the child is born, and the child’s birth weight.