The woman missed out on paid parental leave because the decision was made on the estimated due date, not the actual date of birth. File photo. Photo: RNZ
The Green Party is calling for broader eligibility for paid parental leave, after another parent was turned down because her baby was born prematurely.
The woman applied to the Employment Relations Authority for a review of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment's decision to decline her application for parental leave payments.
She applied in July after her baby was born prematurely. The baby had been due in October. She had to leave her job to care for her child and recover.
But MBIE determined that she was not eligible because she had not been employed for more than 26 of the 52 weeks before her estimated due date of October.
The woman said the decision should have been made on the date of birth in July, not the estimated due date.
If the birth date had been used, she have met the criteria.
She had a period of time when she was overseas and then not working until she had specialist approval to do so, between November 2023 and May 2024.
She told the authority that an online calculator suggested she would qualify, she had followed medical advice, and had worked 29 weeks in the year leading up to the child's birth.
But authority member Helen van Druten said MBIE had made the correct assessment to decline her application for parental leave payments in accordance with legislation.
Green Party spokesperson for Workplace Relations and Safety spokesperson Teanau Tuiono said paid parental leave was "so important" for ensuring that babies had the best start in life, and for the wellbeing of their whanau.
"For parents to miss out on PPL over technicalities like this is simply unjust and unreasonable.
"Such glaring inequities highlight that the law around access to PPL should be looked at again. The Greens would extend paid parental leave and ensure broad eligibility for it."
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