PART III

New Provisions relating to Maternity Allowance

9. —Section 24 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by—

(a) the substitution for subsection (2) of the following subsection:

“(2) Subject to the following provisions of this section, the period for which maternity allowance is payable shall be—

(a) the period of maternity leave to which a woman is entitled by virtue of section 8 of the Maternity Protection of Employees Act, 1981 (including any extension of that period by virtue of section 12 of that Act) or

(b) in the case of a woman not so entitled to maternity leave, the period of 12 weeks beginning with the 6th week before the end of the expected week of confinement, but—

(i) if the woman who is entitled to the allowance dies, the allowance shall not be payable for any subsequent week,

(ii) if the date of the confinement occurs after the expected week of confinement, the allowance shall, subject to subparagraph (i), be payable until the expiration of the 6th week after the week in which that date occurs.”; and

(b) the addition of the following subsection:

“(5) For the purpose of subsection (2) (a) (inserted by the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981), where the employment ceases (whether due to the death of the employer or otherwise) during the period of maternity leave, the woman shall continue to be treated as if the event which caused the cesser of employment had not occurred.”.

10. —Section 25 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for subsection (1) of the following subsection:

“(1) The contribution conditions for maternity allowance are—

(a) (i) that the claimant has qualifying contributions in respect of not less than 26 contribution weeks in the period beginning with her entry into insurance and ending immediately before the relevant time, and

(ii) that the claimant has qualifying contributions or credited contributions in respect of not less than 26 contribution weeks in the last complete contribution year before the beginning of the benefit year in which the relevant time occurs or in a subsequent complete contribution year before the relevant time; or

(b) that the claimant has qualifying contributions in respect of not less than 26 contribution weeks in the 12 months immediately preceding the first day of a period of maternity leave to which she is entitled by virtue of section 8 of the Maternity Protection of Employees Act, 1981 .

In paragraph (a) “relevant time” means the date of commencement of the 6th week before the end of the expected week of confinement or, in the case of a claimant entitled to maternity leave by virtue of the said section 8 , the first day of that leave.”.

11. —(1) The Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for section 75 of the following section:

“75. (1) Notwithstanding any other provision in this Chapter, additional benefit (by way of pay-related benefit) shall be paid to a woman entitled to maternity allowance under paragraph (a) of section 24 (2) (inserted by the Social Welfare (Amendment) Act, 1981) to provide that the weekly aggregate of the maternity allowance, pay-related benefit (if any) otherwise payable under the other provisions of this Chapter and such additional benefit will be an amount equal to—

(a) 80% of her reckonable weekly earnings in the income tax year prescribed for the purpose of this section, or

(b) 80% of such amount as may be prescribed as the average reckonable weekly earnings of women in that year,

whichever is the greater.

(2) The percentage specified in subsection (1) may be varied by regulations having regard to such matters as—

(a) movements in the annual average earnings of women, and

(b) the imposition or variation of statutory deductions from or charges on earnings.”.

(2) Section 3 (4) (a) of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion of “75 (2),” after “73,”.