Parental Leave
With effect from 8 March 2013 Ireland has extended the entitlement to Parental Leave from 14 weeks to 18 weeks. Every employee (male and female) has an entitlement to 18 weeks parental leave for each qualifying child.
Request for changes to working hours or work patterns
On returning to work from Parental Leave workers may request changes to their working hours and/or work patterns for a set period of time. An employer must consider and respond to the request taking into account both the employer's and the worker's needs. There is no mandatory obligation to grant the request.