PSA media release 7 November 2001

Paid parental leave - great news!!

Congratulations from the PSA to the Government and all those who have lobbied and campaigned for paid parental leave. The introduction of long awaited paid parental leave is a fantastic advance for working women and their families.

Setting a level that gives many women between 80 and 100% of their pay will make a real difference for families. "Twelve weeks payment is a great start and tagging the pay level to the average wage is excellent" said Richard Wagstaff, national secretary of the PSA. "We would have liked the level to be higher and look forward to the time when the level reaches 80% and the time is extended to fourteen weeks".

"We can now hold our heads up in international forums. New Zealand has made a great start towards meeting the ILO convention on Maternity Protection, " said Richard Wagstaff.

ENDS

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