Section 4: Child-rearing leave

During the period following the expiry of maternity or adoption leave, any employee with at least one year’s seniority is entitled: 1° Either to parental leave during which the employment contract is suspended; 2° Or to a reduction in their working hours, without this part-time work being less than sixteen hours per week.

Parental education leave and the period of part-time work are initially for a maximum of one year. They may be extended twice to end at the latest at the end of the periods defined in the second and fourth paragraphs, regardless of when they began. Parental childcare leave and the period of part-time work end no later than the child’s third birthday. In the event of multiple births, parental leave…

In the event of serious illness, accident or disability of the child, assessed in accordance with the procedures defined by decree of the Conseil d’Etat, the parental leave and the period of part-time work end no later than one year after the deadlines defined in article L. 1225-48.

The employee shall inform his employer of the starting point and duration of the period during which he intends to take either parental leave or a reduction in his working hours. Where this period immediately follows maternity leave or adoption leave, the employee shall inform the employer at least one month before the end of such leave. Otherwise, the information is given to the employer at least two months before…

When the employee intends to extend or modify his parental leave or his period of part-time work, he shall notify the employer at least one month before the end of the period initially planned and inform him of his intention either to convert the parental leave into part-time work or to convert the part-time work into parental leave. However, during the period of part-time work or when it is extended,…

In the event of the death of the child or a significant reduction in household resources, the employee has the right: 1° If he/she is on parental education leave, either to return to his/her original job, or to work part-time up to the limit of the period initially stipulated in the employment contract; 2° If he/she works part-time to raise a child, to resume his/her initial activity and, with the…

An employee on parental education leave or who works part-time to bring up a child may not otherwise engage in any professional activity other than childcare activities as defined by Title II of Book IV of the code de l’action sociale et des familles.

Half of the period of full-time parental leave is taken into account in determining the employee’s seniority rights. When an employee reduces his working hours as part of parental leave, the period of part-time parental leave is treated as a period of actual work for the purposes of determining the employee’s seniority rights. The employee retains the benefit of all the advantages acquired before the start of the leave.

At the end of the parental education leave or the period of part-time work, or within one month of the reasoned request to resume the initial activity mentioned in Article L. 1225-52, the employee returns to his previous job or a similar job with at least equivalent remuneration.

During parental leave or a period of part-time work to bring up a child, employees have the right to take a skills assessment at their own initiative. During this period, the employee is not paid. They benefit from the social security legislation relating to protection against accidents at work and occupational illnesses set out in article L. 6342-5 for vocational training trainees.