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JUSTICE MINISTER HELEN McEntee will take six months paid maternity leave from 30 April.
Speaking in the Dáil this afternoon, the Taoiseach announced that the government would facilitate the minister’s maternity leave.
Minister McEntee will become a minister without a portfolio, and Minister Heather Humphreys will temporarily hold the position of Minister for Justice as well as her existing role.
Hildegard Naughten, the super junior minister, will take on some justice duties as well as her existing junior responsibilities.
McEntee will become the first Cabinet minister to give birth while in office. The baby is due in May. The minister previously stated that she intended to take six months’ leave.
Due to public office holders not being entitled to maternity leave, previous politicians who have become mothers have claimed sick leave when they take time off to have and look after their newborn baby.
The Taoiseach said: “We have agreed an approach which upholds the core principles of equality, while also operating within the current legal framework, which is based on completely outdated assumptions and attitudes in this area.
“Minister McEntee will, therefore, take paid maternity leave from her role as Minister for Justice for a period of 6 months with effect from April 30th. She will remain a Member of the Government, without portfolio, for that period.
“Finally, I believe that this illustrates once more the absolute requirement for permanent reform in this area to ensure full equality for all public representatives and the need to introduce maternity and paternity leave for councillors, Senators, TDs, and Ministers.
“We want to make sure that having a family is in no way in conflict with pursuing a career in public life.
“That will require legislative change, or possibly constitutional change.”
In a statement, McEntee said: “Just as girls of my generation looked to the strong women who came before us for inspiration and guidance, those of us in politics now have a responsibility to make it easier for today’s girls to fulfil those dreams and ambitions.
“I and my colleagues in Government are determined to change the current system for the next generation. I welcome the fact that the Citizen’s Assembly on Gender Equality is considering the question of maternity, paternity and other types of leave for public representatives.
While I am very thankful to all my colleagues for their help and co-operation in accommodating me, it is clear that the lack of provision for maternity, paternity and other types of leave for those in public life is an issue that needs a long term solution.
I look forward to working with colleagues across politics to bring about these much needed changes.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said earlier this week that the government was committed to facilitating McEntee taking maternity leave “and to not have to resign”.
He said he believes that facilitating the minister taking maternity leave “will be a catalyst for wider change and reforms”.
Speaking at an event this week, McEntee said she is not the first female politician to have a baby, and she won’t be the last.
She said it was frustrating that though women had gone before her, nothing within the system had changed.
McEntee said it is not about telling women that they should take maternity leave, but more about providing choice for women.
If “breaking down barriers” is important and if encouraging women into politics is to be done, then it is about facilitating women to have a family and continue in their career in politics, she said.
She said she hoped her situation would “bring about change” for all female politicians, whether they are ministers, TDs or local councillors.
With reporting from Sean Murray
Can’t wait to see how many people get upset over this. Absolutely zero issue with her taking paid maternity leave the same as many others are able to.
@Rob Hunt: Well when she is getting paid a ministerial bonus, from you and me, for not even being a minister it’s very silly.
@Rob Hunt: the majority of employers in this country do not offer paid maternity leave, meaning most mothers need to depend on the meagre maternity leave allowance from the social welfare office
@David ‘Wear A Mask’ Harkin: agreed but hopefully this will undermine that position.
@Rob Hunt: yes I think if a man looked for the same he would just be allowed to claim his TD pension only
@Rob Hunt: probably the same people upset over equality. It’s not a state of ‘wokeness’ . It’s a state of the permanently angry. Some people just aren’t happy unless the world are kicking them in the stomach.
@David ‘Wear A Mask’ Harkin: private companies. Would you complain if the state offered their private contract. I’d say you would. You would also have a problem I reckon if the state sub contracted out all public services privately for a price. Here’s your no win bonus
@Rob Hunt: im only upset by Hildagrad Naughton bit
@Rob Hunt: same, assuming a temp minister can step in?
@Rob Hunt: the journal is full of people who get their rocks off by complaining. They should all go and talk to Joe.
@Ger: As you take the time out to post and complain and about people complaining..
@David ‘Wear A Mask’ Harkin: yes but every other female public servant gets it,so can’t see why she shouldn’t. If we want our leaders to reflect the gender balance of our population this needed to be addressed. The only shocking thing is it has taken so long.
@Lucy Legacy: every woman should get it.
@Rob Hunt: it’s not the issue of her getting paid, it’s how quick government can get things done for there own.
@Rob Hunt: Maternity leave is on a statutory basis, maternity pay is mot. Most working women in the private sector have to survive on social welfare.
@Jimmy Mac: examples please…..!
How many private companies give 6 month paid leave and would the government fund this for all? One law for the rich one for the poor…
@John Lyons: she’s a public servant, it’s funded for all public servants
@John Lyons: The private company I work for give six months maternity leave and believe me….I’m not rich and either are my colleagues (unless they hide it well and have a side gig) who get the fully paid maternity leave
@Tess Ting: that doesn’t make it fair on the private sector employees who basically get the dole payment for the duration- its blatant discrimination pure and simple
@WiseUp: good for them but not every company can afford this
@John Lyons: Discrimination! Wow get that lemon out of your mouth. Bitter.
@WiseUp: you obviously don’t know the meaning of the word if you don’t see favoring one group of employees over another as discriminatory!
@John Lyons: mine does …
@John Lyons: It is not discrimination if some companies don’t do what they should – that’s nonsensical. I would guess that most large private sector employers also give paid maternity and paternity. As far as I know, it will soon be mandatory for all employers.
@John Lyons:
@John Lyons: Listen John I’m sure both of us have more important things to do than argue over the meaning and context of discrimination but I don’t agree with you. The civil service has their HR employment t&c’s as do privately owned companies. If your employer pays you more than me or gives you more annual leave days or what it’s not discrimination it’s just the way it is.
@Tess Ting: She is an elected representative and could lose her ministry or her entitlement to become a minister if a general election is called. So to class her as a public servant is entirely wrong.
@John Lyons: So which situation are you advocating for, paid maternity leave or not? You’re comolaining about both!
@Donal McCarthy: guess again
@John Lyons: all public servants get maternity leave las
@John Lyons: Raise the bar John! Don’t lower it.
Fair enough
@Colm Connolly: does she get to take the three months unpaid leave after the six months paid maternity leave like other female employees?
@Ciaran O’Mara: id hope so, 6 months is not long enough for a mother
Good for her! The right decision.
That’s great, hopefully sets a precedent now to sort this out for once and for all, embarrassing it took someone to get pregnant first, hope she enjoys her time with her baby.
It’s not enough to facilitate one TD in this and casual talk about a catalyst to change in the future. Maternity leave should be part of the system. Shared parental leave after the birth of a child should be part of the system, with autonomy around who takes what amount of a shared entitlement. It’s 2021, not 1958.
Well said sir / madam
Maternity leave and pay is already part of the system. It is set by the government at under 300 per week. But all the public sector get that topped up to their full salaries. In the ministers case the will be topped up to 1800+ per week.a small proportion of private sector employers do this also.
@john s: So do we take this away? or make private companies do the same?
Full pay? Not what most get, it’s usually a percentage of your wage capped at a certain amount.
@David ‘Wear A Mask’ Harkin: google it and see if you’re right. Citizens info will help you
@David ‘Wear A Mask’ Harkin: It’s usually your wage minus your social welfare entitlement
@Coady Connor: its usually just the social welfare payment for the majority of employees
@NotMyIreland: Then there’s also room for improvement
@David ‘Wear A Mask’ Harkin: not so
Ministerial position’s are decided by the Taioseach not the electorate, in my opinion she should only be paid her TD salary and resign as minister.
@Ian O Hara: So your opinion is she should lose income as a result of taking maternity leave. Not sure what the fact that ministerial positions are decided by the Taoiseach has to do with any of it.
@Ian O Hara: It would be massively illegal to demote/cut someones pay because they gave birth.
@Donal McCarthy: there are very few company’s who pay women their full salary while on maternity leave.
@Conor Murphy: I beg to differ, the Taioseach can replace her as a minister anytime.
@Ian O Hara: Most of the large private companies do (less statutory). Also, the point here is that other state employees do get full pay, so it would be wrong to discriminate against her just because she is a politician, even if that is a post she must be elected to, and then selected to by the Taoiseach.
Happy to see this happen in general but my god does it show plainly how self serving politicians are. If that was a lay person it would have been 6 years going around the houses before it was signed off.
@Nomad: Self-serving? She’s not the first woman to get pregnant. It’s 2021 ffs. This serves every woman.
@Wurps: every woman in the public service!
@Nomad: @Nomad: What are you talking about?! Maternity leave policies are laid out in most places of employment. The government have never had a situation where a sitting minister was pregnant. They didn’t have 6 years to figure it out…..pregnancy is about 40 weeks. How on earth is it self-serving for them to sort this out before she has the child?
Good, in fairness it is in line with other public servants.
€3500 a week for a wealthy woman staying at home, no wonder we’re €241,000,000,000 in debt.
@roscommonrebel: at least she has always gone to work.
Part of the reason we have high debts relates to people who think work is beneath them
@John Mulligan: Correct, the bankers on their golf courses, entertainment sites on their computers and their aversion to even the most cursory attention to their job. Causing their businesses to go belly up bankrupting the country in the process
Best of Luck to the lovely McEntee. I pray all goes well with her. Best of luck.
Nothing to see here move on,private matter.
Not only is it a disgrace, it’s.not legal . All the poor people with disadvantaged children making do with little or nothing. Making this exception is not a priority for me
@Michael Curran: Aren’t we paying for hem too?
Why is this news? She’s expecting a baby and is entitled to paid leave? The Journal looking to churn up some debate about how she should be sacked, it’s illegal under employment law to dismiss someone because of pregnancy.
@Adam: Try and keep up there Adam – there is no provision in law for a Minister to take maternity leave. She is not in fact entitled to anything and for her to be so entitled would probably require a referendum. So the Government are making ad hoc arrangements here. Hopefully, no one will challenge this in the courts.
@Donal McCarthy: how would it be a referendum? Where exactly would the change be required in the Constitution?
@Rhona Quinn: See https://www.thejournal.ie/maternity-leave-politicians-referendum-5311810-Dec2020/ – as I said, probably, possibly would probably be better. There is simply no provision for a TD to take maternity. In this case, Holly Cairns has offered cover, but in theory, if the numbers were tight, and the opposition unaccommodating, such a TD would still need to vote
If it was simple, they would have done whatever that was.
@Donal McCarthy:
She would be entitled to her full TD salary. It’s the top up for being a minister, that she was not entitled to.
@David Shaw: Possibly, but she would not be on maternity leave, especially if her vote was needed.
In any case, it would still amount to a loss of earnings due to the situation, which would be discrimination compared to other civil servants.
@Adam: There’s no provision to pay a TD maternity leave. A TD gave birth in 2016 and was back at work in two weeks because she had no entitlement to maternity leave or pay.
Why wasn’t the law changed then.
@Teresa Ryan:
That is incorrect Teresa. TD’s get their full salary no matter what. They can take the whole year off and still get full pay. You cannot deduct a TD’s pay for not turning up.
The issue is not that a woman is getting paid maternity leave – the issue is that our constitution does not provide for paid leave for all of its citizens so rather than just change it for TD’s and those in “public life” as our Taoiseach said today – why not change the constitution for all and make maternity leave a legal requirement for all and not just the chosen few
What the hell is a super junior minister
Shame on thejournal.ie for this article. It’s not news, it’s a private matter and created only with the knowledge that it’ll cause a stir.
Anyone with a grevience here is a tosser. Fair play to her.
Best wishes to her on her upcoming event ,and totally agree she should be treated the same as all other women
I am actually flabbergasted that her taking maternity leave was an issue. In 2021 its unbelievable that any woman should be put in a position of potentially leaving her job to have a baby.
Hopefully she doesn’t give birth while in her office..
@Robert Kennedy: My wife was close to giving birth in a cab to the hospital… Taxi driver said we’d better not or he’d charge us for 3 people!!
It’s funny, it’s not quite the noble victory she thinks it is, because TDS are on the make so hard, that no one cares if they get ML or not. They work one afternoon a week and get paid silly money. Let’s see her fight to get ML for everyone before offering a pat on the back. All she’s done here is fought for her own right to get ML
How long do male ministers have it off?
JUSTICE has been done, at last .
Not only do I think she should but I think you should almost be forced to.
The same for the other parent, too.
And what if a GE is called during her maternity leave? Does she get to keep her seat by default because you can’t lose your job while on leave? No problems with her taking the leave, but she should have to fight a seat if a GE is called.
I will admit at first I thought “well isn’t it well for her getting paid for the six months, I didn’t get that” but the issue isn’t that she gets it, it’s that not all women do. Begrudging her doesn’t help the situation. Hopefully, other issues can also be highlighted in the wake of her return, such as breastfeeding/pumping breaks only given until baby is 6 months, even though WHO recommendeds 2 years breastfeeding.
I see no problem in her taking maternity leave, but the “solution” to deal with the duties of Minister for Justice seem a bit halfbaked.
If one of the cleaners in the department of justice was taking maternity leave, another cleaner would have to replace her for the six months to cover her role, it would not be a case of sharing her work around the rest of the cleaning crew, simply because of the risk that the work would suffer.
But apparently, heading the department of justice is less important than cleaning it..
Good! shouldn’t have even had to get this far
The fact that there was no constitutional position envisaged for the inevitable female minister getting pregnant while in office and taking her entitled maternity leave speaks more about how backward this country still is. The standard should be paid maternity leave for all women and the employers that dont pay it should be excluded from all state work.
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