After section 72, insert:
The purpose of this subpart is to provide employees who are victims of people affected by domestic violence with a minimum entitlement to paid leave for the purpose of dealing assisting the employees to deal with the effects on the employees of being victims of people affected by domestic violence.
In this subpart,—
domestic violence has the meaning given to it in section 2 of the Domestic Violence Act 1995
domestic violence document has the meaning given to it in section 2 of the Domestic Violence Act 1995
domestic violence leave means paid domestic violence leave provided under this subpart
victim of domestic violence has the meaning given to it in section 5(2A)(b) of the Domestic Violence Act 1995.
(1)
In this subpart, a person affected by domestic violence means a person who is 1 or both of the following:
a person against whom any other person is inflicting, or has inflicted, domestic violence:
a person with whom there ordinarily or periodically resides a child against whom any other person is inflicting, or has inflicted, domestic violence.
(2)
In this section, child has the meaning given to it in section 2 of the Domestic Violence Act 1995.
This section applies to an employee who is a victim of domestic violence.
A request may be made by the employee or on the employee’s behalf to the employer to approve the employee’s taking domestic violence leave.
(3)
The request must—
state that the request is made under this subpart; and
state—
the employee’s name; and
the date on which the request is made; and
have attached to it a copy of the employee’s domestic violence document.
(4)
As soon as is practicable after receiving a request, the employer must approve the employee’s taking domestic violence leave.
(5)
The employee—
may take up to 10 days’ leave within a year of the date of the employer’s approval; and
may not carry forward any leave not taken in the year.
(6)
Sections 63, 64, 67, 71, and 72(1) apply to domestic violence leave as if the references in them to sick leave or bereavement leave were references to domestic violence leave.
An employee may take domestic violence leave—
if the employee is a person affected by domestic violence (regardless of how long ago the domestic violence occurred, and even if the domestic violence occurred before the person became an employee); and
in accordance with sections 72D and 72H.
An employee is entitled to domestic violence leave—
after the employee has completed 6 months’ current continuous employment with the employer; or
if, in the case of an employee to whom subsection (1)(a) does not apply, the employee has, over a period of 6 months, worked for the employer for—
at least an average of 10 hours a week during that period; and
no less than 1 hour in every week during that period or no less than 40 hours in every month during that period.
Domestic violence leave must be provided—
to an employee to whom subsection (1)(a) applies, for—
the 12-month period of continuous employment beginning at the end of the 6-month period specified in that subsection; and
each subsequent 12 months of current continuous employment:
to an employee to whom subsection (1)(b) applies, for—
the 12-month period of employment beginning at the end of the 6-month period specified in that subsection; and
each subsequent 12-month period of employment as long as the circumstances referred to in subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of that subsection continue to apply.
However, an employer and employee may agree that—
the employee may take domestic violence leave in advance; and
in the case of domestic violence leave taken in advance, the amount of leave taken is to be deducted from the employee’s entitlement under this section.
An employee who intends to take domestic violence leave must notify the employer of that intention—
as early as possible before the employee is due to start work on the day that is intended to be taken as domestic violence leave; or
if that is not practicable, as early as possible after that time.
An employee is not entitled to be paid for any domestic violence leave that has not been taken before the date on which the employee’s employment ends.
An employer may require proof that an employee is a person affected by domestic violence to be produced for domestic violence leave taken under section 72C.
An employee—
may take up to 10 days’ domestic violence leave in each of the 12-month periods specified in section 72D(2); and
cannot carry forward any domestic violence leave not taken in any of those 12-month periods.
An employer must pay an employee an amount that is equivalent to the employee’s relevant daily pay or average daily pay for each day of domestic violence leave taken by the employee that would otherwise be a working day for the employee.
Despite subsection (1), an employer is not required to pay an employee for any time for which the employee is paid weekly compensation under the Accident Compensation Act 2001 or former Act.
An employer must not require an employee to take as domestic violence leave any time for which the employee is being paid—
first week compensation by the employer under section 97 of the Accident Compensation Act 2001 or former Act; or
weekly compensation for a work-related injury within the meaning of that Act or former Act.
However, if an employer pays the difference between the employee’s first week compensation or weekly compensation and ordinary weekly pay, the employer may agree with the employee that the employer may deduct from the employee’s domestic violence leave entitlement 1 day for every 5 whole days that the employer makes that payment.
An employer must pay an employee for domestic violence leave in the pay that relates to the pay period in which the leave is taken.
However, if an employee is required to provide proof under section 72G and fails, without reasonable excuse, to do so, the employer is not required to pay the employee for any domestic violence leave in respect of which the proof is required until the employee complies with that requirement.