CSC clarifies period to avail of paternity leave

Republic Act No. 8187, also known as the Paternity Leave Act of 1996, grants paternity leave of seven days with full pay to all married male employees in the private and public sectors to enable the married male employee to effectively lend support and assistance to his wife in her period of recovery and in the nursing of their newly born child.

As the central human resource institution of the government, the Civil Service Commission (CSC) is mandated to formulate rules and regulations on the entitlement to leave of absence of officers and employees in the civil service.

The civil service omnibus rules on leave, which contain the implementing rules and regulations of RA 8187 for the public sector, provide the conditions for the grant of paternity leave. However, the rules originally did not specify the period within which the leave may be availed of.

The CSC deemed it necessary to harmonize the public sector policy on availing paternity leave with that of the private sector through the issuance of CSC Resolution No. 1501531 promulgated on Dec. 21, 2015.

Section 20 of the rules now reads as: “Paternity leave of seven days shall be non-cumulative and strictly non-convertible to cash. The same may be enjoyed either in a continuous or in an intermittent manner by the employee on the days immediately, before, during, and after the childbirth or miscarriage of his legitimate spouse. Said leave shall be availed of not later than 60 days after the date of the child’s delivery.”

All rules, regulations, and issuances that are inconsistent with the resolution are repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.

-From the Civil Service Commission