14th July 2026 |
Bills
This document outlines the heads of the Pregnancy Loss Leave Bill.
The proposal is to draft a Bill to provide leave for pregnancy loss prior to 23 weeks gestation to address the policy demand identified in the PLACES Report - Pregnancy Loss (under 24 weeks) in Workplaces: Informing Policy Makers on Support Mechanisms - and recent Private Members Bills and to recognise a loss that occurs in 1 in 4 pregnancies but goes largely unacknowledged and unrecognised.
The Bill will provide 5 days paid leave per year for a person experiencing a pregnancy loss prior to 23 weeks gestation. The leave will require medical certification.
The entitlement to leave will be a day one right, while the entitlement to payment will include a 13-week service requirement.
It will operate as a distinct statutory entitlement, separate from statutory sick leave and maternity leave.
The Bill will provide for non-application of obligations for employers who operate a pregnancy loss scheme that is, taken as a whole, more favourable to employees.
The Bill will provide for the protection of employees availing of their entitlement.
The Bill will provide for a statutory review three years following enactment.
The development of the General Scheme is informed by the PLACES report. The study, carried out by the Pregnancy Loss Research Group at University College Cork, highlighted the need for a statutory entitlement to paid leave in cases of pre-viability pregnancy loss and found that, despite being the most common adverse outcome in pregnancy, such losses are often treated as private events with little formal acknowledgement.
The General Scheme also responds to a policy demand evident in recent Private Members Bills, including the Organisation of Working Time (Reproductive Health Related Leave) Bill 2021 and the Pregnancy Loss (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025, both of which sought to introduce statutory leave for those experiencing pregnancy loss.
Topics:
Workplace and Skills