According to the ministerial decision, the transfer of the special leave and benefit to the father requires the child’s mother to be their beneficiary, without requiring her to have used part of it before
By decision of the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Kostis Hatzidakis, the conditions and the procedure for the transfer of the special maternity protection permit for employees of the private sector are regulated domain from the mother to the father of the child, pursuant to the relevant legislative regulation of Law 4997/2022 (article 43).
The regulation provides that the mother is entitled to transfer up to seven months from the special maternity protection leave to the father, if he works in a fixed- or indefinite-term dependent employment relationship in businesses or holdings full-time or part-time.
According to the ministerial decision, the transfer of the special leave and benefits to the father requires the child’s mother to be their beneficiary, without requiring her to have previously used part of it. The mother chooses how to exercise her right and, in particular, whether she will use the entire special maternity leave (9 months) or whether she will transfer part of the right to special leave and maternity protection up to seven months to the father of a child.
The mother can also determine intervals that she will use the special leave herself alternatively with the child’s father. It does not matter the order in which the parents will use the leave in addition to each other.
In other words, the mother can exercise the first part of the above right and transfer the rest to the father up to the limit of seven months. Alternatively, the father can first make use of a part of the special leave and benefit transferred to him by the mother, up to seven months, and then the mother can exercise the rest of her right herself, up to the completion of nine months of leave or vice versa.
The distribution of periods of leave and benefits, after transfer, can be made continuously and in addition between the parents and for more than one shift.
The mother decides whether or not to transfer the maternity leave.
The transfer is made with a responsible declaration to the Public Employment Service (DYPA), through the Single Digital Portal, where they state:
- the name, AMKA and VAT number of the father,
- the period(s) of leave she has taken or intends to take,
- the period(s) of the leave he transfers to the father, of a total duration of up to seven calendar months.
The responsible declaration can be amended with a newer declaration from the mother.
The granting of the leave to the father, after being transferred to him, can be done immediately after the end of the mother’s maternity leave (childbirth and childbirth) or immediately after the end of the leave equal to the reduced working hours by the mother or by the father, as they apply each time, or even after the end of the father’s or mother’s annual normal leave, as long as the periods of the above leave are consecutive.
Her annual leave of the mother or the father is granted compulsorily, before the special maternity protection leave, in case, based on the annual deadlines, it is in danger of being lost.
Mothers, who already today and from 25/11/2022, the date of entry into force of Law 4997/2022, use the special leave, can transfer the right to the father for the remaining time, until the completion of nine months .
The leave is granted to the employee, following his application to the employer, to whom he must give a written notice one month in advance.
This deadline does not apply, as long as the mother who transfers her right to the father has less than two months of special leave remaining.
The employee may terminate the special leave with the written agreement of the employer. In this case, the remainder of the leave is not carried over to another time period, but can be granted again to the mother.
The time of the employee’s absence from work, during the special maternity protection leave, is counted as time of actual service for the calculation of the annual normal leave, the length of service for determining the remuneration and compensation in case of dismissal, but also every right deriving from the provisions of the labor legislation.
The working father who makes use of the special leave entitled to all benefits and the consequences in terms of insurance coverage, just like the mother.
In fact, it is emphasized that all the general and special provisions relating to the special provision of maternity protection apply to the father in the same way as they apply to the working mother who exercises the same right, especially with regard to the protection and maintenance of his employment and the his working conditions, on his return to the same job or an equivalent job, with no less favorable professional terms and conditions and to benefit from any improvement in working conditions to which he would be entitled during his absence.
The Public Employment Service (DYPA), during the special maternity protection leave, which is transferred to the father, pays him the special maternity protection allowance, as long as he is in an active employment relationship. The subsidy amount paid to the working father is that which the working mother herself would receive, according to the current legislation, which provides that, during the special leave, DYPA pays the working mother a monthly amount equal to the minimum wage, as determined from time to time, as well as a proportion of holiday gifts and leave allowance, based on the aforementioned amount.
Source: Skai
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