Union win: Parental leave dispute

The Fair Work Commission in late July handed down a recommendation in favour of an IEU member about interpretation of the new right for a non-initial primary caregiver (usually the father) to take 12 weeks paid parental leave.

This new right is in the new multi-enterprise agreement (MEA) for teachers in independent schools, finalised earlier this year. The agreement applies to schools represented by employer group the Association of Independent Schools (AIS).

Although the decision is a recommendation and not legally binding, the union expects schools will follow the Commission’s approach in interpreting the new entitlement.

The new parental leave entitlement

Under Clause 19.3 of the Independent Schools (Teachers) Cooperative Multi-Enterprise Agreement 2025 (CMEA), an employee (usually the father) is entitled to paid parental leave to be the primary carer of a child within 12 months of the birth after the initial carer (usually the mother) has taken leave.

Similar provisions are included in the Professional and Operational Staff multi-enterprise agreement.

FWC rejects school’s interpretation

The dispute concerned an IEU member who applied for leave as the non-initial primary caregiver in April this year, after the new MEA had commenced.

''Members who were previously denied paid leave may now be entitled to it.''

The school denied his request for 12 weeks of paid leave under the new CMEA, arguing that a transitional clause excluded him from the new entitlement because he had taken two weeks concurrent parental leave under the old MEA at the time of the child’s birth.

The FWC rejected this view, confirming that our member’s earlier leave was a separate, completed period and did not prevent him from accessing the new entitlement.

What this means for IEU members

This decision confirms that under the 2025 multi-enterprise agreement, teachers who become the primary caregiver within 12 months of their child’s birth are eligible for up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave, even if they had previously taken a short period of concurrent leave.

This means members who were previously denied paid leave may now be entitled to it.

We urge you to let any members who may be affected know about this outcome.

If any member was previously denied access to the leave, we invite you to call your organiser to discuss accessing this entitlement.

Liam Crisanti
Industrial Officer