Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 15:

In page 13, line 44, to delete “13E.” and substitute “13D.”.

Amendment No. 20 inserts a new section, 13E, into the Parental Leave Act to provide for the termination of a flexible working arrangement by an employer where the arrangement would have a substantial adverse effect on the operation of their business. The employer must give four weeks' notice to the employee and set out the reasons the flexible working arrangement is being terminated. In providing such notice to the employee, the employer must have regard to the employee's needs as well as their own. An employee may also make representations to the employer upon receipt of such a notice. This provision has been included to provide a balance between the needs of the employee and the employer, which may change over time. The four-week period is intended to give the employee time to make other arrangements. The existing section 13D, which provided for the employer to postpone the commencement of a period of flexible working until the signing of an agreement, has been removed to avoid an employee being delayed in taking up flexible working arrangements beyond the period in which it is required. Section 13E, which provides for the variance of flexible working arrangements, will now become section 13D. Amendment No. 15 is a consequential technical change to the Bill as a result of amendment No. 20.

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