15th October 2026
October marks Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month and this week the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke, T.D., has provided an update on his forthcoming legislation, which aims to introduce pregnancy loss leave for employees whose pregnancy has ended in a loss.
Minister Burke has secured priority drafting for the Pregnancy Loss Leave Bill under the Autumn Oireachtas legislative programme. The Pregnancy Loss Leave Bill aims to provide for five days of employer paid leave per year for women who suffer a pregnancy loss prior to 23 weeks gestation. Under existing legislation, maternity leave is only available for those who experience a loss from 23 weeks gestation and onwards.
Speaking about Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month Minister Burke said:
“October marks Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month and on Thursday the 15th of October, my department will light up in remembrance as part of the global ‘Wave of Light’.
"Unfortunately, pregnancy loss is not uncommon, with 1 in 4 pregnancies ending in a miscarriage. These losses can often go underacknowledged in the workplace, despite the deep impacts they have.
"I believe it is time to take action on this issue, and that is why I am working to introduce 5 days paid pregnancy loss leave for employees whose pregnancy ends in a loss prior to 23 weeks gestation. This new entitlement will give employees the time and space to grieve and recover from a very personal experience that in too many cases has gone unseen and without support in the workplace.”
The general scheme of the Bill is informed by a significant Government commissioned study on the workplace experiences of pregnancy loss – ‘PLACES | Pregnancy Loss (under 24 weeks) in Workplaces: Informing policymakers on support mechanisms‘.
Notes to Editor
Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month
October marks Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. As part of this, the global Wave of Light takes place on 15 October between 7pm and 8pm, when homes and buildings are illuminated in remembrance of pregnancy and infant loss.
The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment on 23 Kildare Street, Dublin 2, will participate in the Wave of Light and will be illuminated on Thursday evening.
The General Scheme
The proposal is to draft a Bill for pregnancy loss prior to 23 weeks gestation to address the policy demand identified in the PLACES report 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 be paid by the employer, at 70% of the daily rate capped at €110 a day, in line with statutory sick leave. 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.
The Bill will provide for non-application of obligations under the Act for employers who operate a pregnancy loss scheme that is, taken as a whole, more favourable to employees.
The General Scheme is available on the Department’s website: General Scheme of the Pregnancy Loss Leave Bill - DETE
Existing legislation
The Maternity Protection Acts provide for an entitlement to 26 weeks maternity leave and benefit and a further 16 weeks unpaid maternity leave in the case of a stillbirth. Stillbirth is defined in the Civil Registration (Electronic Registration) Act 2024 as ‘a child who, at birth, weighs not less than 400 grammes or has a gestational age of not less than 23 weeks and shows no sign of life...’. The Paternity Leave and Benefit Act 2016 also provides for an entitlement to paternity leave and benefit in the case of a stillbirth. The Sick Leave Act 2022 provides for a statutory sick pay scheme for all employees who are medically certified as unfit for work. From 1 January 2024, the entitlement to paid sick leave increased to 5 days.
The PLACES Report
The PLACES Report - Pregnancy Loss (under 24 weeks) in Workplaces: Informing Policy Makers on Support Mechanisms - considered loss under 24 weeks gestation as it was commenced before the Civil Registration (Electronic Registration) Act 2024 was commenced. The aim of the project was to examine the workplace experiences of pregnancy loss before 24 weeks gestation, and to identify relevant needed supports. The project included a search for relevant research; a review of international statutory leave for pregnancy loss; a sample of pregnancy loss policies across companies in the Republic of Ireland; a national mixed-method survey with 913 participants’ responses included; and a qualitative interview study with 13 participants.
The report was published on 26 January 2024 and makes a series of recommendations regarding support for employees who have experienced a pregnancy loss, including that a statutory right to paid leave should be introduced for pre-viability pregnancy loss, regardless of the gestational stage or the reason for the loss. This recommends that the leave should be subject to medical certification.
The full report is available here: PLACES - Pregnancy Loss (under 24 weeks) in Workplaces: Informing policymakers on support mechanisms (PDF, 2.2MB)
ENDS
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