
On the buses
A Sydney bus driver was forced to keep driving until the date her baby was due and had to rush back to work early after being denied paid parental leave on a “technicality”.
Shelley Parker worked for the required 10 out of 13 months before the birth of her first child six weeks ago and was hoping to take six months off to care for the baby but because the 10 months she worked were not consecutive her application for paid parental leave was rejected. That is despite having worked a total of 1720 hours in 10 months, when she was required to have worked for only 330 hours to be eligible.
She said she was not told that she could only take an eight week break from work to qualify for the scheme which she expected would grant her about $13,000 for the six months she has hoped to take off work.
The Transport Workers Union said Mrs Parker and her family were “just seeking access to the regular scheme that Tony Abbott’s Government has shut them out of on a technicality”. (Source: Fairfax)