Fórsa has welcomed the introduction of the national right for up to five days unpaid leave for medical care purposes which comes into effect next week.

The care responsibilities could be towards oneself, their family or dependants.

But Fórsa has said the alarmingly low rates of take-up of these forms of leave around the country comes down to the fact that it’s unpaid.

“We welcome this as one of many measures needed to achieve a better work and home life balance for Irish parents, guardians and carers. But we need to ensure that people will not be at a disadvantage financially if they choose to access this measure and the Government needs to explore the ways in which that can be done,” the union said.  

The new measures all form part of the Work Life Balance Act.

The work-life balance act will extend leave to workers who need to take time off to provide personal care or support to a relative.

The act also extends to the right to request flexible or constricted work hours, for those with caring responsibilities.

It also extends the current right to paid breastfeeding breaks from six months to two years, and extends existing maternity leave rights to transgender people who give birth.