Return from Parental Leave

Returning from parental leave brings several key obligations for employers. Until the child reaches the age of two, the employee must be reinstated to her original job and workplace, while after the age of two, a position corresponding to the employment contract is sufficient.

During parental leave, a protection period applies, during which the employer cannot give notice of dismissal, except in cases such as the company's dissolution or a gross breach of duties. If the employer cannot assign work, an obstacle to work arises, entitling the employee to 100% of their average earnings. Furthermore, the employer must respond to a request for part-time work, with refusal possible only for serious operational reasons, which must be justified in writing.

Basic Employer Obligations Upon Return from Parental Leave

Let's go back to the first quarter of 2026 – a number of important changes concerning the protection of parents and their rights have just come into effect. The most significant change was introduced by the aforementioned "flexi-amendment": the employer is now obliged to hold an employee's job not only after maternity leave but also after parental leave – but with one crucial time limit.

The basic principle is clear: the employer must ensure that the employee can return to work. This sounds simple, but in practice, it involves a series of specific obligations that vary depending on when the employee returns.

Return Before the Child's Second Birthday – Guarantee of the Original Position

If an employee returns from parental leave before her child reaches the age of two, the employer is obliged to reinstate her to her original job and workplace. This means the very same position she held before.

This right is absolute; there are no exceptions that would allow the employee to be assigned to a different position if the original one still exists. If the original job or workplace ceased to exist or was eliminated in the meantime, the employee is entitled to work corresponding to her employment contract (type of work, place of work).

If the employer cannot assign even such work, an obstacle to work on the employer's side arises, entitling the employee to 100% of her average earnings. How does this work in practice? If the employee was the head of the sales department in the Prague office and is now returning from parental leave, she must return to the position of head of the sales department in Prague – not to some other position, even if it were nominally "corresponding."

The child's age on the day of return is decisive. If the second birthday falls on a Saturday and the employee works Monday to Friday, she will return on the Monday after that birthday, which already falls into the "after two years" phase. Pay attention to this: the return date must be at least the day before the child's second birthday for the employee to still have the right to her original position. If this is overlooked, she will lose the guaranteed position.

Return After the Child's Second Birthday – Work According to the Employment Contract

If an employee returns from parental leave after her child's second birthday, the employer is no longer obliged to reinstate her to the same position. Instead, the employer must assign the employee work that corresponds to her employment contract – that is, the type of work and place of work agreed upon in the contract.

What is the practical impact? The employer can offer you a different position, as long as it falls under the agreed type of work. If the employment contract states "sales manager in the Czech Republic," you could be moved to another department or another city, as long as it still falls under sales.

This is not arbitrary – but it provides significantly more leeway than a return before the two-year mark. In situations where the employer genuinely cannot assign even such work (due to a department being closed, restructuring, a reduction in staff, etc.), an obstacle to work on the employer's side arises. In such a case, the employer must pay 100% of the average earnings until the employment is terminated or the obstacle is removed.

Protection Period and Prohibition of Dismissal

One of the most important legal protections for an employee on parental leave is the protection period, during which the employer cannot unilaterally terminate the employment relationship by giving notice.

Specifically: during parental leave, the employer is prohibited from giving notice of dismissal. There are only very rare exceptions – for example, the dissolution of the employer (company liquidation), the relocation of the employer to a different location (and even that has limitations), or a gross breach of duties by the employee.

Common reasons such as redundancy, reorganization, or economic grounds are not sufficient. What happens if the employer gives notice anyway? The notice is invalid. The employee can insist that the employer continue to employ her. Formally, the employee must claim the invalidity – ideally in writing to the employer, pointing out that the protection period is in effect and the notice thus violates the law.

If the employer does not yield, the employee can go to court with a lawsuit to declare the dismissal invalid. What evidence should the employee have in practical cases? Minutes from meetings with the employer, emails regarding the request for parental leave, the Labour Office's decision on granting the parental allowance – all can serve as proof that she was in the protection period.

When the Protection Period Begins and Ends

The protection period applies from the beginning of pregnancy, during the time an employee is on maternity leave, and during the time an employee (male or female) is on parental leave.

An interesting situation: if an employee returns from parental leave before it was scheduled to end (e.g., she returns after one year), the protection period ended on the day of her return.

From that moment on, the employer could theoretically give notice – but with a time lag. After returning from parental leave before the child turns 2, the employee still has the right to her original position, so a dismissal for redundancy would be problematic.

Prohibition on Scheduling and Taking Vacation During Parental Leave

Another part of the employer's obligations concerns the use of basic annual leave. During parental leave, the employer may not unilaterally determine when the employee takes her vacation. What does this mean in practice? The employer cannot "order" an employee to take vacation on a specific date during her parental leave.

This right only arises after the employee returns. As for the entitlement to vacation, the period of parental leave is considered as time worked for the purpose of calculating vacation, but only up to a maximum of 20 working days per calendar year (or a proportional part thereof if the parental leave does not last the entire year).

This means that the employee is entitled to vacation even during parental leave, albeit to a limited extent. A special rule exists for the situation where an employee requests to take vacation immediately following the end of her maternity leave.

In such a case, the employer is obliged to grant the request. If the employee requests to take vacation after the end of parental leave, the employer is only obliged to grant her request if the vacation taken does not exceed the duration of the parental leave. The employer should actively plan the use of vacation and notify the employee if there is a risk of it expiring.

Option of Part-Time Work or Flexible Arrangements

The employer has an obligation to consider an employee's request for a part-time schedule or other adjustment to working hours if the employee has a child under the age of 15.

Specifically: if an employee, upon returning from parental leave, requests to work 30 hours a week instead of the usual 40, the employer must carefully consider this request and respond. The employer cannot automatically refuse – they can only do so if the shorter hours would cause serious operational problems.

What constitutes serious operational problems? If reducing the hours would mean that commitments to clients could not be met, that a team would collapse, or that it would have a direct negative impact on the department's functioning. It's not just a matter of "it would be inconvenient" or "everyone would want it."

The employer must provide a written justification for their refusal. Conversely: if there are no serious operational reasons, the employer must grant the request. This is not a matter of loyalty or goodwill – it is a legal obligation. Regarding working from home or other flexible arrangements: here, the employer is not strictly bound, but should consider the options, especially in professions where it is technically feasible (administrative work, IT, project management).

Assigning Work and Obstacles to Work on the Employer's Side

Upon return from parental leave, the employer has one fundamental duty: to assign work according to the employment contract.

This sounds general, but in practice, it means the employer cannot leave the employee without work. If the employee returns and the employer has no suitable position for her (either because the department was closed or for another reason), an obstacle to work on the employer's side arises.

What are the consequences? The employee is entitled to wage compensation equal to 100% of her average earnings – meaning she receives her usual salary even though she is not working, until the obstacle is removed or the employment relationship is terminated.

How long does this last? Theoretically, indefinitely – the Czech Labour Code addresses obstacles to work without a time limit. In practice, however, the employer and employee often agree on a reasonable period, after which the termination of employment is often resolved by agreement with severance pay.

Flexible Forms of Work During Parental Leave – New Rules

As of June 1, 2025, the rules regarding work during parental leave have changed. The key change: an employee can now perform the same type of work for the same employer as she did before her leave, based on an agreement to complete a job (DPP) or an agreement to perform work (DPČ).

Previously, this was not possible – an employee could only work under a DPP or DPČ if it involved a different type of work. Now it is permitted, which brings flexibility for both employees and employers.

How does this work in practice? If an employee is on parental leave and has childcare arranged from, say, 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM every day, she can agree with her employer to work during these hours under a DPP, doing the same job she did before.

At the same time, she will continue to receive the parental allowance (if she meets the conditions – especially regarding childcare). The volume of work under a DPP or DPČ is limited – a DPP allows up to 300 hours per year, while a DPČ allows an average of half the standard weekly working hours (i.e., about 20 hours per week).

Important note: childcare must be maintained. If the child is under two years of age, they cannot spend more than 92 hours per month in a preschool facility. For children over two, this restriction does not apply. This limitation relates to the entitlement to the parental allowance, not the employment relationship itself, but the employee usually wants to keep the allowance.

Termination of Employment and Severance Pay

There are situations where the employer and employee agree that continuing the employment is not feasible. How should this be handled correctly?

Dismissal After Returning from Parental Leave

After the employee returns to work (i.e., when the protection period has ended), the employer may decide to give notice of dismissal if there are legally prescribed reasons for doing so.

Most often, this involves redundancy, when the number of employees is being reduced and the employee's position is eliminated, or organizational changes, when a department or function is reorganized, if it is not possible to offer the employee an equivalent position.

In these cases, however, the employer is obliged to pay severance, the amount of which depends on the length of the employment relationship: at least one month's average earnings if the employment lasted less than one year; at least two months' average earnings if the employment lasted at least one year and less than two years; at least three months' average earnings if the employment lasted at least two years.

Important: if the employer gives notice without a legal reason or for a reason that is specifically related to the return from parental leave (for example, "we have less work now"), they risk the court declaring the dismissal invalid. The ARROWS legal team could potentially draft an opinion documenting whether the reason is truly objective.

Agreement on Termination of Employment

An alternative is to reach an agreement with the employee on the termination of the employment relationship. In the agreement, you can specify the exact termination date, severance pay (it is possible to agree on a higher amount than required by law), and any other rights and obligations (e.g., providing a reference, returning company property, etc.).

The agreement must always be in writing. Caution: if the employer devotes less time and care to the agreement than to a notice of dismissal, and the employee later claims she was not sufficiently informed of the consequences, she may, in extreme cases, challenge the agreement in court. It is therefore wise to precede the agreement with a consultation so that the employee is aware of her entitlements.

Ancillary Aspects of Employment – Vacation, Benefits, Insurance

An employee returning from parental leave retains all the rights she had before her leave, and the employment relationship continues uninterrupted.

Taking Vacation

For the purpose of calculating vacation, the period of parental leave is considered as time worked, but only up to a maximum of 20 working days per calendar year (or a proportional part thereof if the parental leave does not last the entire calendar year). This means that the employee is entitled to vacation even during parental leave, albeit to a limited extent.

If the employee did not use her basic vacation during parental leave, her right to it remains. Unused vacation can be carried over to the following calendar year if it could not be taken due to obstacles to work (including parental leave).

The employer should actively plan the use of vacation and notify the employee if there is a risk of it expiring. Practical advice: if an employee returns in the summer and still has unused vacation from the previous year (exceeding the 20-day limit mentioned above) plus the current year's entitlement, the employer should consult with her on a schedule. This is not about "punishing" her by making her take vacation in October – it should be a pragmatic solution.

Social and Health Insurance

During parental leave, the state is the payer of health insurance for the employee. Upon her return to work, the employer assumes full responsibility for paying health and social insurance contributions from the employee's income, just as with other employees.

No special "re-registration" as a new employee is needed. The state pays health insurance for a person on parental leave for the entire calendar month in which this status was valid, even if only for part of the month.

Support for Workers with Parental Responsibilities

During the period when an employee is working and has a child under 15, there are legal entitlements to adjustments in working conditions (as mentioned above). The employer should be aware of this group of employees and handle their requests transparently.

Final Summary

Returning from parental leave is not just a formality – it is a moment when specific legal obligations for the employer come into play, which cannot be circumvented. A key change from last year: if an employee returns before her child's second birthday, she is guaranteed the right to return to her original job and workplace – this is a new right that also applies to employees who were on parental leave before the "flexi-amendment" came into effect.

After the child's second birthday, the protection diminishes – the employer must assign work according to the employment contract, but not necessarily in the original position. During parental leave, the employer cannot give notice of dismissal, cannot dictate when vacation is taken, must seriously consider a request for part-time work, and if unable to assign work, must pay 100% of the average earnings.

Violating these obligations risks the invalidity of legal acts, financial penalties, and lawsuits. It is wise for employers to prepare in advance – to map out exactly how they will proceed, what position they will offer, and how to handle any potential obstacles.

If you are unsure, contact the lawyers at the ARROWS law firm (consultation@arws.cz) and get advice on how to proceed safely and without the risk of breaking the law.