Parental Leave Act 1998
Interpretation.
2.—(1) In this Act—
F1[‘adoption order’ means an adoption order within the meaning of section 3(1) of the Adoption Act 2010 or a recognition of an intercountry adoption effected outside the State within the meaning of that Act;]
“confirmation document” has the meaning assigned to it by section 9;
“contract of employment” means—
(a) a contract of service or apprenticeship, or
(b) any other contract whereby an individual agrees with another person, who is carrying on the business of an employment agency within the meaning of the Employment Agency Act, 1971, and is acting in the course of that business, to do or perform personally any work or service for a third person (whether or not the third person is a party to the contract),
whether the contract is express or implied and if express, whether it is oral or in writing;
“date”, in relation to a confirmation document, means the date on which it is signed by the parties thereto or the later of the dates on which it is so signed;
“employee” means a person of any age who has entered into or works under (or, where the employment has ceased, entered into or worked under) F2[a contract of employment and includes a part-time employee and a fixed-term employee,] and references, in relation to an employer, to an employee shall be construed as references to an employee employed by that employer; and for the purposes of this Act, a person holding office under, or in the service of, the State (including a member of the Garda Síochána or the Defence Forces or a civil servant within the meaning of the Civil Service Regulation Act, 1956) shall be deemed to be an employee employed by the head (within the meaning of the Freedom of Information Act, 1997), of the public body (within the meaning aforesaid) in which he or she is employed and an officer or servant of a local authority for the purposes of the Local Government Act, 1941, or of a harbour authority, health board or F3[a member of staff of an education and training board] shall be deemed to be an employee employed by the authority F3[or board], as the case may be;
“employer”, in relation to an employee—
(a) means the person with whom the employee has entered into or for whom the employee works under (or, where the employment has ceased, entered into or worked under) a contract of employment, subject to the qualification that the person who under a contract of employment referred to in paragraph (b) of the definition of “contract of employment” is liable to pay the remuneration of the individual concerned in respect of the work or service concerned shall be deemed to be the individual's employer, and
(b) includes, where appropriate, the successor or an associated employer of the employer;
F4[‘fixed-term employee’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 2(1) of the Protection of Employees (Fixed-Term Work) Act 2003;]
“force majeure leave” shall be construed in accordance with section 13(1);
“job”, in relation to an employee, means the nature of the work that the employee is employed to do in accordance with his or her contract of employment and the capacity and place in which he or she is employed;
“the Minister” means the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform;
“parental leave” shall be construed in accordance with section 6(1);
F4[ ‘part-time employee’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 7(1) of the Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001;]
“prescribed” means prescribed by the Minister by regulations;
F5[‘specified Act’ means the Parental Leave (Amendment) Act 2019;
‘specified day’ means the day on which the specified Act comes into operation;]
“successor”, in relation to an employer, shall be construed in accordance with section 15(1);
“the Tribunal” means the Employment Appeals Tribunal.
(2) For the purposes of this Act, two employers shall be taken to be associated if one is a body corporate of which the other (whether directly or indirectly) has control or if both are bodies corporate of which a third person (whether directly or indirectly) has control and “associated employer” shall be construed accordingly.
(3) In this Act—
(a) a reference to a Part or section is a reference to a Part or section of this Act unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended,
(b) a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph is a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph of the provision in which the reference occurs unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended, and
(c) a reference to any enactment shall be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended, adapted or extended, whether before or after the passing of this Act, by or under any subsequent enactment.
F6[(4) A word or expression used in this Act and also in Council Directive 2010/18/EU1 of 8 March 2010 shall have the same meaning in this Act as in that Directive.]
Annotations
Amendments:
F1
Substituted (1.11.2010) by Adoption Act 2010 (21/2010), s. 169, S.I. No. 511 of 2010.
F2
Substituted (8.03.2013) by European Union (Parental Leave) Regulations 2013 (S.I. No. 81 of 2013), reg. 3(a)(i), in effect as per reg. 1(2).
F3
Substituted (1.07.2013) by Education and Training Boards Act 2013 (11/2013), s. 72 and sch. 6 item 26, S.I. No. 211 of 2013.
F4
Inserted (8.03.2013) by European Union (Parental Leave) Regulations 2013 (S.I. No. 81 of 2013), reg. 3(a)(ii), in effect as per reg. 1(2).
F5
Inserted (19.07.2019) by Parental Leave (Amendment) Act 2019 (11/2019), s. 2, S.I. No. 356 of 2019.
F6
Substituted (8.03.2013) by European Union (Parental Leave) Regulations 2013 (S.I. No. 81 of 2013), reg. 3(b), in effect as per reg. 1(2).
Modifications (not altering text):
C4
Prospective affecting provision: functions transferred and Employment Appeals Tribunal construed by Workplace Relations Act 2015 (16/2015), s. 66, not commenced as of date of revision.
Transfer of functions from Employment Appeals Tribunal
66. (1) (a) All functions that, immediately before the dissolution day, were vested in the Employment Appeals Tribunal are transferred to the Commission in so far as they relate to any claim for redress, dispute or complaint determined by the Employment Appeals Tribunal under an employment enactment before that day.
(b) All functions that, immediately before the dissolution day, were vested in the Employment Appeals Tribunal are transferred to the Labour Court in so far as they relate to appeals determined by the Employment Appeals Tribunal under an employment enactment before that day.
(2) (a) References in any enactment or instrument under an enactment to the Employment Appeals Tribunal in so far as they relate to a function transferred by paragraph (a) of subsection (1) shall be construed as references to the Commission.
(b) References in any enactment or instrument under an enactment to the Employment Appeals Tribunal in so far as they relate to a function transferred by paragraph (b) of subsection (1) shall be construed as references to the Labour Court.
(3) This section shall come into operation on the dissolution day.
C5
Functions transferred and references construed (14.10.2020) by Disability, Equality, Human Rights, Integration and Reception (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order 2020 (S.I. No. 436 of 2020), arts. 2, 3(1)(a), (3) and sch., in effect as per art. 1(2), subject to transitional provisions in arts. 4-8.
Note change of name of Department and title of Minister to Department of and Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth made (15.10.2020) by Children and Youth Affairs (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 2020 (S.I. No. 437 of 2020), in effect as per art. 1(2).
2. (1) The administration and business in connection with the exercise, performance or execution of any functions transferred by Article 3 are transferred to the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.
(2) References to the Department of Justice and Equality contained in any Act or instrument made under such Act and relating to any administration and business transferred by paragraph (1) of this Article shall, on and after the commencement of this Order, be construed as references to the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.
3. (1) The functions vested in the Minister for Justice and Equality -
(a) by or under the enactments specified in Schedule 1, and
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are transferred to the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs.
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(3) References to the Minister for Justice and Equality contained in any Act or instrument made under such Act, and relating to any functions transferred by this Article shall, on and after the commencement of this Order, be construed as references to the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs.
SCHEDULE 1
Article 3(1)(a)
Enactments, functions by or under which are transferred from the Minister for Justice and Equality to the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs
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Parental Leave Acts 1998 to 2019
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