7. Partially paid parental leave
From August 2022 employees who take parental leave will continue to receive partial payment of their salary for a portion of the leave. During the child’s first year the parents will be entitled to nine weeks of paid parental leave.
This is a payment under the Work and Care Act (Wazo payment), which they will apply for through their employer. The parental leave will also apply if parents had a child before the Act was introduced, provided that this child is less than 1 year old. The parents must also be working (be an employee) at that time and must not yet have taken the full parental leave entitlement (26 times their working hours per week).
During the parental leave they will continue to receive a partial salary payment at a level of 50%. This is relatively low, which means that taking this leave remains less attractive for low-paid work-ers. Because of this concern, Wouter Koolmees, the caretaker Minister for Social Affairs and Employment, added a further provision to the legislative proposal.
This states that the percentage of the payment should be increased to 70% even before the Act is introduced, if the new government agrees to this and is able to free up the necessary budget.
This motion, asking the government to increase the percentage from 50% to 70%, was passed by a majority of members in the Upper House (in Dutch: 'Eerste Kamer'). It is therefore possible that this will now happen.