Parental leave makes progress
Money Magazine Australia|March 2023
Both employers and the government are helping to ease the financial costs of raising children
Parental leave makes progress

If you are thinking of having a baby, it can make a big difference if at least one partner, but preferably both, is employed by a company that offers generous paid leave.

When I last wrote about paid parental leave several years ago, the best employer scheme I could find offered 18 weeks. This time I found several companies offering 26 weeks for either partner and many more offering 18 weeks.

When I had my kids, very few workplaces offered paid parental leave. My partner and I had to fund my time out of the workforce, and this meant there was a lot of pressure to return to work quickly to pay the mortgage.

These days around 60% of employers pay parental leave, according to insights gathered from the 2020-21 census by the government’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency.

Large organisations are more likely to offer paid parental leave than small businesses.

But the length of leave varies. While only 6% of companies pay more than 18 weeks, the average is between seven and 12 weeks for employers of 100 or more staff members.

If your employer doesn’t pay parental leave or pays for only a short period, the government pays for 18 weeks for the primary carer and two weeks for the partner. But in last year’s budget, it announced it is raising this to 26 weeks, in staggered periods of two weeks, from July 2024 to July 2026.

How much you get

Parental leave pay from the government is currently $812.45 a week ($162.49 a working day before tax).

Esta historia es de la edición March 2023 de Money Magazine Australia.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

Esta historia es de la edición March 2023 de Money Magazine Australia.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

MÁS HISTORIAS DE MONEY MAGAZINE AUSTRALIAVer todo
An outrageous, beautiful monopoly
Money Magazine Australia

An outrageous, beautiful monopoly

Telstra's mobile business is a cash machine with few competitors, giving it the highest returns in the world.

time-read
4 minutos  |
July 2024
Drop the anchor to judge value
Money Magazine Australia

Drop the anchor to judge value

Buying and selling decisions should be based on where a stock price is going, not where it has been.

time-read
3 minutos  |
July 2024
Powering the AI boom
Money Magazine Australia

Powering the AI boom

Beyond the software and chipmakers, where will the energy come from?

time-read
3 minutos  |
July 2024
Get into life
Money Magazine Australia

Get into life

Tucked inside super are products that can protect you from life's inevitable uncertainties.

time-read
5 minutos  |
July 2024
Paths to home ownership
Money Magazine Australia

Paths to home ownership

Taking the road less travelled can sometimes deliver unexpected benefits.

time-read
5 minutos  |
July 2024
Sold! Quick ways to add value
Money Magazine Australia

Sold! Quick ways to add value

Small, strategic changes can have a big impact on the look and feel of your home. And get you a better price on auction day.

time-read
5 minutos  |
July 2024
Money lessons the kids need to know
Money Magazine Australia

Money lessons the kids need to know

Your children can learn a lot from your past money mishaps. Here are eight financial conversations I have had with mine.

time-read
4 minutos  |
July 2024
Property-investing rules: are they likely to change?
Money Magazine Australia

Property-investing rules: are they likely to change?

The pressure for the government to curb the tax benefits of tax concessions, such as negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount, is unrelenting. Most recently, independent senators David Pocock and Jacqui Lambie proposed five options for paring back investment property tax concessions, with savings to the Federal budget of up to $60 billion over the next decade.

time-read
3 minutos  |
July 2024
What's love got to do with it?
Money Magazine Australia

What's love got to do with it?

A rollercoaster of emotions could be driving poor crypto behaviour.

time-read
3 minutos  |
July 2024
Are we ready to be cash-free?
Money Magazine Australia

Are we ready to be cash-free?

Saying goodbye to our piggy banks too soon could leave small businesses in the dark when problems arise.

time-read
2 minutos  |
July 2024