Maternity, paternity, adoption rights and parental leave
Your personal assistant is allowed to have maternity, paternity, adoption and parental leave and pay.
All pregnant employees are entitled to paid time off for ante-natal care and 52 weeks’ maternity leave – made up of 26 weeks’ ordinary maternity leave and 26 weeks’ additional maternity leave.
Fathers and partners (including same-sex and civil partners) may be entitled to two weeks’ paternity leave. They may also be eligible for additional paternity leave and pay if their partner returns to work before the end of their maternity/paternity leave. Where a child is adopted the position is similar.
An employee is allowed reasonable time off to deal with an emergency involving a dependant. A dependant could be a spouse, partner, child, grandchild, parent or someone who depends on you for care. For more information please visit www.gov.uk/time-off-for-dependants
Employers can get back most or all of these payments from the Income Tax and National Insurance contributions they pay.
Your personal assistant may be entitled to parental leave (unpaid leave to look after their child’s welfare). Parental leave is limited to four weeks for each child, each year. Eligibility for parental leave is explained here www.gov.uk/parental-leave/entitlement.