PROVISION OF SOCIAL LEAVES TO EMPLOYEES WITH FAMILY RESPONSIBILITIES AS A MEAN OF SOCIAL PROTECTION

Abstract

The article examines problematic issues that arise in connection with the provision of social leave enshrined in Article 19 of the Law of Ukraine “On Leave”. Attention has been drawn to the various positions of state bodies in the field of labor relations regarding the acquisition of the right to the mentioned leave by the mother or father during the period of this employee’s stay on parental leave until the child reaches the age of three. Given that in science, the purpose of both social leaves is to care for the child, and the woman was given maternity leave for this purpose, does the woman have the right to another social leave for the same period with the same purpose, which she will use later, after the end of maternity leave, will she receive monetary compensation upon dismissal. To solve this issue, it is worth paying attention to whether the purpose of these social leave is achieved in the legislation. Before the changes were made, the connection between the fact of the mother’s work and the right to social leave was followed, therefore, during the full years of the mother’s stay “on maternity leave”, she did not have the right to social leave, as a mother of two children under the age of 15. Currently, there is no connection in the legislation between the fact of the mother’s work and her right to social leave, so it is enough for her to be in employment and for the father of the children not to use the right to this social leave during the same period and not to receive monetary compensation in the event of his dismissal during this period. Establishing equal rights for fathers and mothers in terms of exercising the right to leave, provided for in Article 19 of Law No. 504, is a positive step in reforming labor legislation. But in order for the provision of this social leave to become an effective means of social protection, it is necessary to improve the current legislation, in particular, to improve the procedure for exercising the right to leave in particular, through approval by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine of the procedure for exercising the right to leave provided for in Article 19 of Law No. 504. In order to reduce the risk of abuse of the right to this leave by one of the parents, it is appropriate in the Law of Ukraine “On Leave” to provide for the consent of one of the parents who has the right to this leave for the other parent to receive it or to receive monetary compensation in the event of dismissal. If one of the parents does not give consent for the other to exercise this right, this leave is divided between the parents into equal shares. The question of how to resolve situations in the event that children are brought up in different families, as well as in the event that the location of one of the parents is unknown, requires additional research.