Combining school holidays with work commitments can be challenging for many parents, but there are legal alternatives that can help address this issue.
Attorney Maria Ramos Roque, from PRA Advogados, stated in an interview on Tuesday with TVI, that “there are two mechanisms” outlined in the law that can be used for this purpose: the complementary parental leave and the leave for child care.
In terms of remuneration, the complementary parental leave is more beneficial as it provides a “benefit paid by Social Security”. Meanwhile, the leave for child care “is not remunerated at all”.
It is also important to note that these two types of leave “do not require the agreement or acceptance of the employer“, meaning that the worker only needs to give prior notice of the chosen leave to the company.
Complementary parental leave or leave for child care?
The complementary parental leave provides a “subsidy allocated to the father or mother or both, for a duration up to 3 months, taken alternately or simultaneously for the care of a child within the family, aimed at replacing lost work income, provided the leave is taken until the child turns 6 years old“. More information can be found here.
On the other hand, within the scope of leave for child care, “parents have the right to leave for child care, either consecutively or intermittently, up to a limit of two years“. It should be emphasized that “during the period of leave for child care, the worker cannot engage in any activity incompatible with the purpose of the leave, namely subordinate work or the continuous provision of services outside their usual residence”. More details can be found here.
