Keeping in Touch while on Parental Leave Pay

In addition to taking PPL, an employee has the option to remain in contact with their workplace under the Keeping in Touch provisions.

Keeping in Touch is an arrangement between an employer and employee that allows an employee to remain connected to their workplace, assists in the transition back to work and has no effect on the PPL payments.

Once an arrangement is in place, the employee has access of up to 10 Keeping in Touch days that can be used during the start and end of their PPL period. However, there are some restrictions which apply when choosing to use one of the days, which include:

• An employee cannot use a day within the first two weeks following birth or adoption of their child;
• An employer cannot ask an employee to use a day within their first six weeks of birth or adoption;
• Both the employer and employee must agree in unison to do a Keeping in Touch activity on the chosen day, otherwise it will not proceed;
• An activity only counts towards an employee’s 10 day limit if the duration is one hour or more on the day that it is taken; and
• An employee using more than the 10 day limit will result in their PPL to end and be considered to have returned back to the workplace.

An important note to consider is that there is a distinction made between paid work and a Keeping in Touch activity. If an employee participates in paid work during their PPL other than a Keeping in Touch activity, their PPL will cease immediately.

For more information on Keeping in Touch provisions, including related activities click here.