Explanatory Memorandum

Work and Families Act (Northern Ireland) 2015

2015 CHAPTER 1

8th January 2015

Commentary on Sections

Part 2: Shared Rights to Leave and Pay

Section 12: Statutory paternity pay: notice requirement and period of payment

Subsection (2) amends section 167ZC of the SSCBA to require a person to give notice in order to take statutory paternity pay and provides a power for the Department to set the amount of notice which the person must give.

Subsection (3), which amends section 167ZE of the SSCBA, gives the Department power to set the number of weeks of statutory paternity pay in regulations subject to a minimum of two weeks. It also allows regulations to be made to enable paternity pay to be taken in non-consecutive periods of not less than one week. This will allow for potential future changes to the way in which the right operates.