Primary Carer Leave
Guildelines - Primary Carer Leave
Purpose
UNSW offers a range of Parental Leave entitlements set out in Clause 39.5 of the UNSW Australia (Professional Staff) Enterprise Agreement 2015 and Clause 33.5 of the UNSW Australia (Academic Staff) Enterprise Agreement 2015. These Primary Carer Leave Guidelines provide the mechanism and criteria by which employees who are the parent of a child and who are not entitled to UNSW’s Maternity Leave may access paid parental leave in circumstances where they are the primary carer.
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Scope
The “primary carer” is the parent who principally meets the daily needs of a child (or children in the case of multiple births) which include feeding, dressing, bathing and supervision. It is the member of a couple (including same-sex couple and irrespective of gender) identified as having principal responsibility for the day-to-day care of a child (or children in the case of multiple births).
An eligible UNSW employee who is the primary carer of a child (or children) born, may access up to a maximum of 26 / 36 weeks full pay of paid leave (“Primary Carer Leave”), regardless of the number of children born, less:
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Eligibility
Primary Carer Leave is available to UNSW employees who satisfy the following criteria:
- working on a continuing, fixed-term, casual or contractual basis and not on any form of paid or unpaid leave
(other than partner leave) in relation to the child (or children) born; or - enrolled with an officially recognised education provider and studying on a full-time basis; or
- unable to be the primary carer of the child.
As a condition of the leave, an employee must provide details and evidence of any leave, study or other activity undertaken by their partner to verify that the above criteria are met.
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Applying for leave
Unless it is impracticable, an employee must provide their supervisor with at least 10 weeks’ notice of the intention to take Primary Carer Leave and at least 4 weeks’ formal notice of the date on which they would like to commence Primary Carer leave. If notice is not provided in this way, the needs of a work unit (not only the needs of an employee) will be relevant in determining whether the employee’s request is granted.
An employee must complete the new HR51A Primary Carer Leave Application form.
The Primary Care Leave benefit cannot be transferred to a non-UNSW employee, nor is it retrospective.
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Taking leave
Primary Carer Leave taken must:
Paid primary carer leave may be paid at full or half pay only, and in the employee’s normal pay-cycle.
As a condition of the leave, an employee must notify UNSW of a change in their circumstances if it means they are no longer eligible for Primary Carer Leave. If an employee wishes to remain on leave, they may request to use one of their leave entitlements. UNSW reserves its right to reclaim any Primary Carer Leave paid to an employee during a period of ineligibility.
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Frequently asked questions
If you have questions about the above Guidelines, please refer to the FAQs.