Industrial Relations Act 1996

The amendments made to Part 4 of Chapter 2 of this Act by the Miscellaneous Acts Amendment (Same Sex Relationships) Act 2008 extend to the taking of extended paternity or partner leave by a female employee where the birth of a child of the employee or of the employee’s female de facto partner has taken place before the commencement of the amendments.

The following provisions apply in place of section 58 (2) in relation to that extended paternity or partner leave—

the employee must, at least 4 weeks before proceeding on leave, give written notice of the dates on which she proposes to start and end the period of leave,

the employee must, before the start of leave, provide a certificate from a medical practitioner stating that the child was born and the date of birth,

the employee must, before the start of leave, provide a statutory declaration by the employee stating—

if applicable, the period of any maternity leave sought or taken by her de facto partner, and

that the employee is seeking the period of leave to become the primary care-giver of the child.

Any entitlement of a female employee to take paternity or partner leave under this clause ceases on the expiration of 1 year following the birth of the child concerned.

In this clause—

a reference to a child of a female employee is a reference to a child of whom the employee is presumed to be a parent because of the application of section 14 (1A) (a) of the Status of Children Act 1996, and

a reference to a child of the employee’s de facto partner is a reference to a child who is born following the pregnancy of the employee’s de facto partner.