The Federal Government has introduced the Paid Parental Leave Amendment (More Support for Working Families) Bill 2023 aiming to improve the lives of families.
The Bill finalises settings for the government’s significant expansion of paid parental leave announced in the October 2022-23 Budget, increasing the scheme to 26 weeks by July, 2026.
The government is committed to providing each parent four weeks of reserved leave from July, 2026 when the full scheme is implemented encouraging shared care.
The Bill also introduces concurrent leave, meaning from 2026 both parents can choose to take four weeks of leave at the same time.
Federal Member for McEwen Rob Mitchell said he was proud to be part of a government delivering on its promises to assist families.
“This is all about making sure that every family has more choice and better support,” he said.
“Roughly 180,000 families nationwide receive paid parental leave each year and these improvements to the scheme will support maternal health and wellbeing, encourage dads and partners to get more involved and give families flexibility to choose how they
share care.”
The Bill follows changes that commenced on July 1, 2023 making the scheme more accessible, flexible and gender equitable – structural changes that laid the foundation for expansion to 26 weeks.
Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth said changes to the scheme better addressed the needs of working Australian families and provided greater security as they adjusted to life with a newborn or adopted child.
“Not only will this help families to better balance work and care, but it will also support participation and productivity over the longer term, providing a dividend for the Australian economy,” she said.
“These changes will provide better security and choice for families. They strike the right balance between supporting our working families, encouraging greater gender equality, and supporting greater workforce participation.”
Pending its passage through Parliament, two additional weeks of payment will be added each year from July 1, 2024 increasing the overall length of the paid parental leave scheme by six weeks by July, 2026.
The government’s changes will benefit over 180,000 families each year, at a cost of $1.2 billion from 2022-23 to 2026-27.
More information on the changes to the Paid Parental Leave scheme can be found on the Department of Social Services website.
