Primary Circular 0091/2006
PRIMARY BRANCH
TO: BOARDS OF MANAGEMENT, PRINCIPAL TEACHERS AND ALL
TEACHING STAFF OF PRIMARY SCHOOLS
Maternity Leave Arrangements for Permanent and Temporary/Fixed
Term Primary School Teachers
1.
Introduction
1.1
The Minister for Education & Science wishes to bring to your attention recent amendments to the
Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act, 2004 in relation to maternity leave.
2.
Maternity leave
The following table sets out a primary school teacher’s entitlement to maternity leave, paid and
unpaid. Maternity leave as set out applies except where the birth occurs before 24 weeks of
pregnancy and the child is stillborn.
Maternity Leave
Maternity leave
commencing prior
to 1st March, 2006
Maternity leave
commencing on or
after 1st March,
2006
Maternity leave
commencing on or
after 1st March,
2007
18 weeks
22 weeks
26 weeks
Additional Unpaid
Maternity leave
8 weeks if starting
this leave before
1/3/06
12 weeks if starting
after 1/3/06
12 weeks
Total leave
12 weeks if starting
this leave before
1/3/07
16 weeks if starting
after 1/3/07
38 weeks
26 weeks
30 weeks
34 weeks
42 weeks
A teacher’s incremental point will not be adjusted in respect of additional unpaid maternity leave
absence set out above. This arrangement will be retrospective to 18 October, 2004.
2.2
Additional unpaid maternity leave
A primary school teacher also has the option of taking, instead of statutory unpaid maternity
leave, the remainder of the school year as additional unpaid maternity leave, i.e. up to and
including the end of the school year (31st August), subject to the approval of the Board of
Management.
2.3
Paid leave in lieu
Teachers on paid maternity leave are entitled to paid leave in lieu in respect of school closures,
including public holidays, subject to a maximum of 30 days.
Since 18 October, 2004 teachers on statutory unpaid maternity leave are entitled to paid leave in
lieu in respect of public holidays occurring during the unpaid leave. Paid leave in lieu is taken on
completion of maternity leave.
Furthermore, since 18 October, 2004 teachers opting to take additional unpaid maternity leave to
the end of the school year (as per 2.2 above), are entitled to paid leave in lieu for any public
holiday occurring provided the additional unpaid maternity leave does not extend beyond thirteen
weeks.
2.4
Temporary/Fixed Term teachers.
Teachers on a temporary/fixed term contract of employment have full maternity leave
entitlements while on maternity leave (paid/unpaid) which occurs during the term of their contract.
If a successive contract is secured with immediate effect from the expiry date of the first contract,
maternity leave entitlements will be maintained.
3.
Start date for commencement of maternity leave
3.1
Under the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act 2004, maternity leave must commence not later
than two weeks before the expected date of confinement, or from the Saturday at the end of the
week in which the leave is due to commence. Four weeks must be taken after the expected date
of confinement, with the remaining maternity leave entitlement (sixteen weeks with effect from
1/3/06) to be taken either before or after the birth. The maternity leave must be taken in a
continuous period (except as outlined in 7 and 10.2 below).
4.
Notification procedures
4.1
A teacher should apply to her Board of Management stating her intention to take maternity leave
on the “Application Form for Maternity Leave”, at least 4 weeks before her maternity leave is due
to begin. This form is available on the Department’s website: www.education.ie under the section
entitled “Education/Personnel” or from Primary Payments Section of the Department. Download
Form
4.2
A medical certificate stating the expected date of confinement should be provided to the Board of
Management. Please note that a teacher paying Class A PRSI must also provide her Board of
Management with a Maternity Benefit Claim Form (MB10). This claim form is available from her
GP. The teacher must also sign the section of the MB10 relating to direct payment of benefit to
the employer. Failure to submit the form to the Department of Education and Science with the
appropriate section signed will result in salary deduction equivalent to the maternity benefit
amount.
4.3
The Board of Management should immediately forward to Primary Payments Section of the
Department the following:



Application Form for Maternity Leave
Medical certificate
Form MB10 (if applicable).
It is not necessary for a teacher to communicate directly with the Department of Education and
Science when applying for maternity leave.
4.4
A teacher who intends to take unpaid maternity leave should apply to her Board of Management
for approval at least one month before her paid leave expires. The Board of Management should,
in turn, notify the Department of Education and Science immediately of the date that the unpaid
leave is due to commence.
5.
Replacement Teacher for a Teacher on Maternity Leave
5.1
A substitute teacher can be employed by the Board of Management to cover paid maternity
leave/leave in lieu and a temporary teacher can be employed to cover unpaid maternity leave.
There is no replacement teacher employed to cover an absence on maternity leave/leave in
lieu/unpaid maternity leave of a teacher on the panel pending redeployment.
6.
Time off for ante-natal visits and classes
6.1
An expectant teacher is entitled to such paid time off from duty as necessary for attendance at
ante-natal clinics.
A teacher is required to provide evidence of appointment or attendance at the clinic to her Board
of Management, and to give two weeks notice of her intention to avail of leave for the purposes
mentioned. Where, for urgent medical reasons, it was not possible to comply with these
requirements, a teacher must, not later than one week after the appointment in question, inform
her Board of Management of the reason for not having given the notice and must provide
evidence of having attended at the clinic.
6.2
An expectant teacher is entitled, for one pregnancy only, to paid leave to attend one set of antenatal classes other than the last three classes in such a set.
In the event that the expectant teacher is unable to attend all of the ante-classes up to the last
three, due to circumstances beyond her control, including miscarriage, premature birth or illness,
she is entitled during a subsequent pregnancy to paid leave to attend the class(es) missed.
6.2
A teacher who is an expectant father is entitled once only to paid leave to attend the last two
ante-natal classes with the expectant mother of their child.
6.3
Application for paid leave to attend ante-natal classes must be made to the Board of
Management, with evidence of dates and times of classes at least two weeks before the date of
the first class or the class concerned.
6.4
A substitute teacher, paid by the Department, may be employed by the Board of
Management to cover absences of the mother at ante-natal clinic and classes and of the father to
attend ante-natal classes.
7.
Postponement of maternity leave/additional unpaid maternity leave (statutory
leave) in the event of the hospitalisation of the child
7.1
If the child, for whose birth a teacher is on maternity leave, is hospitalised, the teacher may apply
to postpone:

part of the maternity leave

part of the maternity leave and the additional unpaid statutory maternity leave or

the additional unpaid statutory maternity leave.
7.2
Maternity leave can only be postponed after at least fourteen weeks of the leave has expired, four
weeks of which must have been taken after the week of the child’s birth.
7.3
An application for postponement of maternity/additional unpaid statutory maternity leave must be
made to the Board of Management, with evidence from the hospital in which the child is
hospitalised. The Board of Management must notify the teacher as soon as possible of its
decision in relation to the application for postponement of leave. If the leave is postponed, the
Board of Management and the teacher must agree the date of her return to work.
7.4
The Department must be notified immediately by the Board of Management if the teacher is to
return to work in order to facilitate salary adjustment, if any and the final payment process for the
substitute/temporary teacher.
7.5
The postponed leave must be taken in one continuous period commencing not later than seven
days after the discharge of the child from hospital. The maximum period of postponement of
leave is 6 months.
7.6
The application to the Board of Management for postponed leave must include documentary
evidence from the hospital or the child’s doctor confirming that the child has been discharged and
stating the date of discharge. The Department must be notified immediately of approval of
postponed leave.
7.7
If the teacher becomes ill while back at work and before she has taken the postponed leave, she
will be considered to have started the postponed leave on the first day of absence due to illness,
or she may forfeit her right to postponed leave and have the absence treated as sick leave. The
procedures in relation to sick leave should be followed, including the furnishing of a medical
certificate where appropriate.
7.8
A substitute teacher or a temporary teacher covering maternity leave/additional unpaid statutory
maternity leave should be made aware by the Board of Management that their appointment may
be terminated in the event of the teacher on maternity leave returning to work while the child is
hospitalised.
8.
Termination of additional unpaid maternity leave (statutory leave) in the event
of sickness of the mother
8.1
If a teacher has made an application for additional unpaid maternity leave or has commenced her
additional statutory unpaid maternity leave and subsequently becomes ill, she may cancel the
application or opt not to continue the additional unpaid maternity leave and apply for sick leave.
8.2
The Board of Management must be contacted and the Board and the teacher must agree the
date of termination of additional unpaid maternity leave. The teacher will be deemed to be on sick
leave and the procedures in relation to sick leave will apply. The teacher will not be entitled
subsequently to take the additional unpaid maternity leave or any part of it not taken at the time of
commencement of sick leave.
8.3
The Department should be notified immediately that the teacher is now on sick leave, to facilitate
necessary salary adjustment. The status of the teacher replacing the teacher on additional unpaid
maternity leave will change from temporary to substitute. The temporary teacher taking up
employment to cover additional unpaid maternity leave should be made aware of the implications
for her/him of the teacher on maternity leave becoming ill.
9.
Protection of mothers who are breastfeeding
9.1
A teacher who is breastfeeding within a twenty six week period after the birth of her child is
entitled to time off, one hour per day, without loss of pay as a breastfeeding break. The time off
may be taken as follows:



one break of 60 minutes
two breaks of 30 minutes each
three breaks of 20 minutes each
9.2
The teacher must notify the Board of Management in writing of her application for such breaks
four weeks in advance of her return to work from maternity leave/additional unpaid maternity
leave. A copy of the birth certificate of the child must be submitted with the application for
breastfeeding breaks. It is a matter for the principal teacher to make the necessary arrangements
with the teacher to facilitate the taking of the breastfeeding breaks.
10.
Entitlements of male teachers
10.1
Entitlement of male teachers to leave in the event of the death the mother while on
maternity leave
With effect from 1March, 2006
In the event of the death of the mother within 32 weeks of the birth of her child, a male teacher
who is the father of the child is entitled to leave as follows:

if the mother dies before the end of the 20th week following the week of the birth of her
child, the father is entitled to paid leave up to the 20th week. At the end of this period he is
entitled to apply for a further 12 consecutive weeks unpaid leave commencing
immediately
Or

if the mother dies after the 20th week following the week of the birth of her child, the father
is entitled to unpaid leave up to the 32nd week following the week of the birth of the child.
With effect from 1 March, 2007
In the event of the death of the mother within 40 weeks of the birth of her child, a male teacher
who is the father of the child is entitled to leave as follows:

if the mother dies before the end of the 24th week following the week of the birth of her
child, the father is entitled to paid leave up to the 24th week. At the end of this period he is
entitled to apply for a further 16 consecutive weeks unpaid leave commencing
immediately
Or

if the mother dies after the 24th week following the week of the birth of her child, the father
is entitled to unpaid leave up to the 40th week following the week of the birth of the child.
The abovementioned time periods will be increased, where appropriate, in accordance with
relevant amendments to the Maternity Acts 1994 and 2004.
Application for such leave must be made to the Board of Management immediately following the
mother’s death and the period of leave must commence within 7 days of her death. As soon as is
reasonably practical, the Board of Management should be provided with a copy of the death
certificate of the mother and a copy of the birth certificate of the child.
A substitute teacher may be employed to cover the period of paid leave of absence of the father
and a temporary teacher may be employed to cover the period of unpaid leave of absence of the
father.
10.2
Postponement of male teacher’s leave in the event of hospitalisation of the child
In the event of the hospitalisation of the child while the father is on approved leave under 10.1, he
may apply to postpone his leave or part of his leave.
The father must apply to the Board of Management to postpone his leave, with evidence from the
hospital in which the child is hospitalised. The Board of Management must notify him as soon as
possible of its decision in relation to the application for postponement of leave and if the
application is approved, the Board of
Management and the teacher must agree the date of his return to work, which cannot be later
than the date on which the leave is due to end.
The postponed leave must be taken in one continuous period commencing not later than seven
days after the discharge of the child from hospital. The maximum period of postponement of
leave is 6 months.
If the father becomes ill while back at work and before he has taken the postponed leave, he will
be considered to have started the postponed leave on the first day of absence due to illness or he
may forfeit his right to postponed leave and have the absence treated as sick leave. The
procedures in relation to sick leave should be followed, and his application for postponed leave
will be cancelled. The Department must be informed immediately of any change of status to the
father’s leave.
A temporary teacher employed to cover such leave should be made aware by the Board of
Management of the implications to his/her employment in the event of the father terminating his
leave if the child is hospitalised.
10.3
Termination of leave in the event of sickness of the father
If a male teacher becomes ill while on approved unpaid leave (as per 10.1), he may opt to cancel
the unpaid leave and to apply for sick leave.
The Board of Management must be contacted and the Board and the teacher must agree the
date of termination of unpaid leave. The teacher will be deemed to be on sick leave and the
procedures in relation to sick leave will apply. The teacher will not be entitled subsequently to
take any additional unpaid leave as a result of the death of the mother or any part of such leave
not taken at the time of commencement of sick leave.
The Department should be notified immediately that the teacher is now on sick leave, to facilitate
necessary salary adjustment.
11.
Employment of Temporary/Fixed term/Substitute Teacher
A temporary/fixed term/substitute teacher employed to cover maternity leave/unpaid maternity
leave, should be informed in writing that their employment “will be terminated on the return to
work of the parent who is absent from work in accordance with the Maternity Protection Act, 1994
and (Amendment) Act, 2004.
This circular may be accessed on the Department Website at www.education.ie under
Education/Personnel/Primary/Circulars & Information Booklets.
Please note that queries regarding the Circular may be e-mailed to
[email protected]
Johnny Bracken,
Principal Officer
June, 2006
Application for Maternity Leave for Primary and Post Primary Teachers
This application must be fully completed (Part 1 by the applicant and Part 2 by the school) and retained in the school
for record and audit purposes. It must not be submitted to Department of Education and Science. At least six weeks
in advance of the commencement date of maternity leave, it is essential that:
(a) the applicant submits this application for Maternity Leave to the Board of Management and
(b) if the applicant pays Class A PRSI contributions, complete and submit a fully completed Maternity Benefit
Claim Form (MB10) to Department of Social and Family Affairs (DSFA). It is the responsibility of the
school to complete Section 4 of the MB10 Form. The submission of the MB10 Form allows the applicant to
claim Maternity Benefit from DSFA who will issue the benefit payable by them directly to the applicant on
receipt of the MB10 claim form. A deduction in value equivalent to the rate of maternity benefit payable to
the applicant will be deducted fortnightly from salary.
Maternity Leave details must be entered on OLCS by the school not later than four weeks in advance of the
commencement date of maternity leave.
PART 1
(TO BE COMPLETED BY TEACHER)
SECTION A – TEACHER DETAILS (PLEASE COMPLETE IN BLOCK CAPITALS)
Name: ______________________________________ School:
_________________________________________
Roll No. _____________ Home Address:
__________________________________________________________
Home Telephone No: ________________ PPSN: _____________________
SECTION B – PAID MATERNITY LEAVE DETAILS
Expected date of confinement (EDC) _______/______/______
(Medical certificate must be enclosed confirming expected date of confinement)
Date of commencement of leave ______/______/______
(Maternity Leave must be commenced (a) not later than 2 weeks before end of Week of confinement
or (b) for the purposes of qualifying for the maximum 26 weeks Maternity Benefit, at most 16 weeks
before end of Week of confinement, the end of a week being a Saturday)
Are you paying full rate (i.e. Class A) PRSI? Yes No (Tick as appropriate)
N.B. If ‘Yes’, you must submit a completed Maternity Benefit Claim Form (MB10) to Maternity Benefit Section,
Social Welfare Services, St Oliver Plunkett Road, Letterkenny, Co Donegal. This Form is available from your G.P.
or online at www.welfare.ie.
SECTION C – UNPAID MATERNITY LEAVE
Will you be availing of unpaid maternity leave after the expiration of your paid leave?
Yes No (Tick as appropriate)
If ‘Yes’, please complete (a) or (b) as appropriate:
includes week-ends
(a) Unpaid leave up to 112 days: Yes State number of consecutive days*
OR
(b) Unpaid leave to the end of the school year (i.e 31 August): Yes
If the answer is ‘No’, and you subsequently decide to take unpaid maternity leave, you must apply to your Board of
Management, on the separate standard application form, at least six weeks before you are due to resume from paid
leave. If you avail of unpaid leave you may be entitled to receive ‘PRSI credits’ – please complete top section of the
‘APPLICATION FOR MATERNITY/ADOPTION LEAVE CREDITS’ which are available in the Social Welfare
booklets SW11/SW37 respectively and request your school to complete the remaining section. The Form should
then be returned to DSFA at address specified in Section B above.
Signature of teacher: Date:
PART 2
(TO BE COMPLETED BY THE MANAGERIAL AUTHORITY)
SECTION A – SCHOOL CLOSURES
For the purposes of adding such days to the end of period (a) or (b) below as ‘leave in lieu’, please
list;
(a) all school closures (Monday to Friday) which will overlap with the 26 week period of
paid maternity leave
(b) all Public Holidays which overlap with period of unpaid maternity leave, if such leave
is being taken
For the purposes of properly allocating as “leave in lieu” the school closures and Public Holidays
identified above, please list;
in respect of (a), from the day immediately after the last day of Maternity Leave (if no unpaid
maternity leave is being taken), all school closures
or
in respect of (a) and (b), from the day immediately after the last day of Unpaid Maternity Leave, all
school closures
N.B. In order for the “leave in lieu” entitlement of the applicant to be correct, it is absolutely
essential that all school closures are identified and recorded in advance of entering any Maternity
Leave details on the On Line Claims System.
From:
To:
No. of days:
Reason for closure:
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
_________________ __________________ ______________ _____________________________
SECTION B
Signature ________________________________________________
(Managerial Authority)
Date ____________________________________________________