Parental leave 2021
- Studio Piceci
- April 19, 2021
- Reading time: 10 min
With Decree-Law No. 30 of March 13, 2021, the legislator provided for paid leave for the care of cohabiting children under the age of 14 in the following cases:
children affected by SARS Covid-19;
in quarantine due to contact;
with in-person teaching suspended.
This leave may be used without age restrictions for the care of children with disabilities in situations of serious disability ascertained pursuant to Article 4, paragraph 1, of Law No. 104 of February 5, 1992, enrolled in schools of all levels for which the suspension of in-person teaching has been ordered or who are housed in day care centers for which closure has been ordered.
This leave may be taken by parents who are employees in the private sector only in cases where the work cannot be performed remotely and as an alternative to the other parent living with the child. In the case of a child with a severe disability, the requirement of cohabitation does not apply.
For periods of leave taken, an allowance equal to 50% of the salary is paid and the periods are covered by imputed contributions.
Parents of children aged between 14 and 16 have the right to take unpaid leave from work without receiving any remuneration or allowance, or recognition of notional contributions, with a prohibition on dismissal and the right to retain their job. In this case, however, requests for leave from work must be submitted to employers only and not to INPS.
The leave applies to parents who are employees. Therefore, both self-employed parents and parents enrolled in the separate pension scheme are excluded from the measure.
Leave may be taken by one or both parents, but not on the same days, for periods of SARS Covid-19 infection, for the period of quarantine due to contact, wherever it occurred, or for the period of suspension of in-person teaching activities in the presence of a cohabiting child under the age of 14. The requirement of cohabitation and the age limit of 14 do not apply to the care of children with disabilities in situations of seriousness ascertained pursuant to Article 4, paragraph 1, of Law No. 104/1992, enrolled in schools of all levels for which the suspension of in-person teaching has been ordered or who are housed in day care centers for which closure has been ordered.
Requirements for taking leave for children without severe disability
In order to be eligible for this leave, all of the following conditions must be met all of the following
requirements:
The parent must have an existing employment relationship. If there is no work from which to abstain, there is no right to leave. It follows that if the employment relationship is terminated or suspended during the period of leave in question, the right to leave ceases and the days following the termination or suspension cannot be compensated. For these reasons, the parent must promptly inform the Institute of any change in their employment relationship.
the parent must not be able to work remotely, as the leave in question can only be taken in cases where it is not possible to work remotely;
the child for whom the leave is taken must be under 14 years of age; therefore, once the child reaches the age of 14, the leave can no longer be taken;
The parent and the child for whom the leave is taken must live together throughout the entire period of leave. Co-habitation is considered to exist when the child is registered as residing in the same home as the parent requesting the leave. Therefore, if the parent and child are registered as residing in two different homes, the leave cannot be taken, as the actual situation is not relevant. In the case of custody or placement of the child, cohabitation is inferred from the custody or placement order to the worker requesting the leave.
One of the following conditions must apply in relation to the child for whom the leave is taken:
SARS Covid-19 infection, resulting from certification/attestation by the family doctor or pediatrician of choice, or from a provision/communication from the local health authority with territorial jurisdiction. All the above documentation must indicate the name of the child and the duration of the prescriptions contained therein;
the quarantine of the child due to contact (wherever it occurred) ordered by a measure/communication from the Prevention Department of the local health authority with territorial jurisdiction;
the suspension of in-person teaching activities ordered by a measure adopted at national or local level or by individual schools, specifying the duration of the suspension.
Requirements for taking leave for children with severe disabilities