No C 333/6 Official Journal of the European Communities 9. 12. 83
II
(Preparatory Acts)
COMMISSION
Proposal for a Council Directive on parental leave and leave for family reasons
(COM(83) 686 final
(Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 24 November 1983)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN
COMMUNITIES,,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the
European Economic Community, and in particular
Article 100 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Having regard to the opinion of the European
Parliament,
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and
Social Committee,
Whereas the Commission, in its communication to
the Council of 9 December 1981 on a new
Community Action Programme on the promotion of
equal opportunities for women 1982-1985 (*),
undertook to take action to promote parental leave
for family reasons;
Whereas the Council, in its resolution of 12 July 1982
on the promotion of equal opportunities for
women (2), approved the general aims of the
Commission communication and expressed the will to
implement the appropriate measures to achieve such
aims;
Whereas there are disparities between the Member
States in national provisions on parental leave and
leave for family reasons, great enough to affect the
compatible functioning of the common market;
whereas it is appropriate to remedy this by an approxi-
mation of laws towards the most advanced provisions
in the terms of Article 117 of the Treaty, under
conditions such as will improve the standard of living
and working conditions of the labour force;
Whereas it is necessary to ensure respect in this area
for the principles of equal treatment as laid down in
Council Directive 76/207/EEC of 9 February 1976
on the implementation of the principle of equal
treatment for men and women as regards access to
employment, vocational training and promotion, and
working conditions (3),
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
SECTION 1
General provisions
Article 1
For the purpose of this Directive:
Parental leave shall mean entitlement to leave of a
given duration to wage-earners, fathers, mothers,
including staff working in the public sector, conse-
quential upon the birth of a child, during the period
following the termination of maternity leave, or to
workers, as defined above, on the adoption of a child
during the period following its reception in the
adoptive parents' household, during which period of
leave the beneficiary takes responsibility for the actual
care of the child.
Leave for family reasons shall mean entitlement to
short periods of leave granted for pressing family
reasons to workers with family responsibilities.
Article 2
1. This Directive is designed to entitle workers to
parental leave and leave for family reasons under
harmonized conditions in the Member States.
2. Provisions for the implementation of this
Directive ensure that there shall be no discrimination
whatsoever on grounds of sex whether directly or
indirectly by reference, in particular, to marital or
family status.
(') COM(81) 758 final.
O OJ No C 186, 21. 7. 1982, p. 3. (») OJ No L 39, 14. 2. 1976, p. 40.
9.12. 83 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 333/7
3. This Directive shall be without prejudice to
^provisions granting paternity leave to a father on the
birth of a child.
Article 3
1. All wage-earners, including staff working in the
public sector, are entitled to parental leave and leave
for family reasons.
2. Part-time workers shall be entitled to parental
leave and leave for family reasons. Any allowance
granted or period of insurance credited shall be
calculated on the same basis as and in proportion to
those of full-time workers in the same situation.
SECTION 2
Parental leave
Article 4
1. Parental leave shall be be granted to enable a
working parent to stay at home in order to take sole
or principal charge of his or her child.
2. Parental leave shall constitute a right and not an
obligation. It shall be granted to a working parent on
request subject to the following provisions:
— the workers shall give adequate notice of their
intention to take parental leave;
— the workers shall give adequate notice of their
intention to return to work after parental leave;
— in no case shall the period of notice required
exceed two months.
3. The period of parental leave to which workers
are entitled shall be at least three months.
4. The duration of parental leave may be extended
for the single parent in the case of one-parent families
or for both parents where the child is handicapped
and lives at home.
5. Entitlement to parental leave shall cease when
the child reaches the age of two years, or five years in
the case of a handicapped child living in the
household of the entitled parent, or of an adopted
child.
6. A worker's right to parental leave shall not be
transferable.
Article 5
1. Parental leave shall be accorded as a continuous
period of either full-time leave or, with the agreement
of both the individual parent and the employer
concerned, as part-time leave, the period during
which leave is taken being extended proportionately.
2. Where parental leave is taken in part,
entitlement to the remaining part shall cease.
3. Parental leave may be made subject to a
requirement regarding length of service or
employment, which must not, in any case, exceed one
year.
4. Parental leave shall be suspended in the event of
the illness of the parent on leave, within the
limitations set in Article 4 (5).
5. Periods of parental leave or leave for family
reasons shall not prejudice any entitlements acquired
or in the process of being acquired.
6. Periods of parental leave shall be credited in the
same manner as periods of maternity leave for the
purposes of periods of insurance as regards sickness,
unemployment and invalidity benefit and old-age
pensions.
7. On termination of the leave, the worker shall
return to the same job or be assigned to an equivalent
job.
Article 6
1. During parental leave, workers may receive a
parental leave allowance.
2. This allowance should be paid from public
funds, social security systems included.
Article 7
Provisions limiting recourse to temporary work shall
not prevent employers from replacing workers absent
on parental leave.
SECTION 3
Leave for family reasons
Article 8
1. Workers shall be entitled to claim a minimum
number of days leave per annum (to be laid down by
the Member States) for pressing family reasons.
2. The following amongst others shall be
considered as pressing family reasons:
— illness of a spouse;
— death of a near relative;
No C 333/8 ' Official Journal of the European Communities 9. 12.83
— wedding of a child;
— illness of a child, or the person caring for the
child.
3. The duration of this leave as provided for in
paragraph 1 may be extended where:
— the beneficiary is head of a single-parent family;
— the beneficiary concerned has three or more
children living at home, under an age limit to be
determined.
4. For the purposes of remuneration, social
security contributions and allowances and pension
entitlements, periods of leave for family reasons shall
be assimilated to paid holidays.
SECTION 4
Final provisions
Article 12
1. Member States shall introduce the laws, regu-
lations and administrative provisions necessary in
order to comply with this Directive and put it into
effect at the latest by (x).
2. Member States shall abolish or amend any laws,
regulations or administrative provisions contrary to
the provisions of this Directive and shall take the
measures necessary to ensure that similar provisions
in collective agreements, individual contracts of
employment and internal rules of undertakings are
likewise abolished or amended.
3. Member States shall immediately inform the
Commission of measures taken in compliance with
this Directive.
4. Member States shall ensure that adequate
machinery exists to enable measures introduced in
implementation of this Directive to be enforced
especially with regard to the principle of equal
treatment of male and female workers.
Article 9
Member States shall introduce into their national
legal systems such measures as are necessary to enable
all persons who consider themselves wronged by
failure to apply this Directive to pursue their claims
by judicial process, possibly after recourse to other
competent authorities.
Article 10
Member States shall take the necessary measures to
protect workers against dismissal by the employer as a
reaction to any steps taken by the worker aimed at
enforcing compliance with the provisions of this
Directive.
Article 11
This Directive shall be brought to the attention of
employers and workers, emphasizing the availability
of parental leave and leave for family reasons to
working parents of both sexes.
Article 13
1. By (2) at the latest, Member States shall
transmit to the Commission all relevant information
to enable the latter to draw up a report on its
application for submission to the Council and the
European Parliament.
2. By (2) at the latest and every three years
thereafter, the Member States shall transmit infor-
mation to the Commission with respect to progress
made in the application of this Directive, trends in the
use of the provisions contained therein and the
evolution of public childcare facilities and services to
enable the Commission to draw up a report for the
Council every three years.
Article 14
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
(') Date to be inserted, being two years from the date of
notification.
(2) Date to be inserted, being three years from notification.
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