The Men's Project:
Resources - Paternity Leave and Pay

Paternity Leave and Pay are part of a package of rights and benefits designed to give support to working fathers, mothers and their partners. These paternity rights have applied in Northern Ireland since 6th April 2003.

The rights to Paternity Leave and Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) allow an eligible employee to take paid leave to care for his baby or to support the mother following birth. He can take either one week or two consecutive weeks’ Paternity Leave and, during this time, may be entitled to SPP.

The Men's Project has collated a fact sheet to provide answers to some of the key questions about Paternity Leave and Pay. This fact sheet describes the situation in Northern Ireland. However, in England, Scotland and Wales corresponding legislation applies and came into force at the same time.

Much of the material presented in this fact sheet comes from the booklet titled “ER34 - Right to Paternity Leave and Pay” by the Department for Employment and Learning.

Please click on the link below to download a PDF version of the fact sheet. This document was last updated in January 2009 ...

Paternity Leave and Pay (PDF, 100KB)