The text of the new draft law No. 15204 of April 27, 2026, which proposes to amend the current legislation and guarantee the preservation of employment for persons who are on or going on parental leave until the child reaches the age of three, has been published.
Explanatory note to the draft law
The explanatory note to the draft law notes that the provisions of labor legislation do not clearly define whether the position of a person who is on parental leave until the child reaches the age of three is vacant and how it is possible to hire employees for such a position while the person is on such leave .
However, the Supreme Court of Ukraine, in its resolutions of December 23, 2020 in case No. 285/4227/18, as well as October 27, 2025 in case No. 600/3466/23-a, analyzing the employer’s compliance with the requirements of Part Two of Article 40, Part Three of Article 49-2 of the Labor Code of Ukraine regarding the employment of an employee, in comparison with the provisions of Part Three of Article 2 of the Law of Ukraine “On Vacations” and Part Two of Article 23 of the Labor Code of Ukraine, concluded that if an employee is absent due to illness, business trip, or vacation, the position he occupies is not vacant .
Therefore, the position of a woman who is on parental leave until she reaches the age of three is not vacant and hiring employees for such a position is possible only under a fixed-term employment contract for the period until the main employee leaves parental leave.
Taking into account the above, based on the legal position of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, the deputies consider it appropriate to clarify the provisions of the legislation in order to guarantee
the preservation of employment for persons who are on parental leave until the child reaches the age of three.
The main goal of the new bill
The purpose of the bill, according to its initiators, is to guarantee the retention of employment for persons (men or women) who are on parental leave until the child reaches the age of three.
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Full text of bill No. 15204 of 04/27/2026 for reading
Below we have provided a text version for ease of reading, the content in the photo above :
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has decided:
- To amend the following legislative acts of Ukraine:
1) Article 179 of the Labor Code of Ukraine (Approved by Law
No. 322-VIII of 10.12.71 VVR, 1971, Appendix to No. 50, Art. 375) to be supplemented
with parts nine and ten of the following content:
“The position of the mother, father of the child or persons specified in part seven of this
article, during the period of their stay on leave for childcare,
is retained by such employees and is not vacant.
The employment of employees to positions, persons specified in this article,
is carried out under a fixed-term employment contract for the period until the end of
leave for childcare of such persons.”
In this regard, part nine shall be considered part eleven.
2) Article 18 of the Law of Ukraine “On Leave” (Vedomosti Verkhovna
Rada of Ukraine (VVR), 1997, No. 2, Art. 4) shall be supplemented with parts five and six
of the following content:
“The position of the mother, father of the child or persons specified in part three of this
article, during the period of their stay on leave for childcare,
shall be retained by such employees and shall not be vacant.
The employment of employees to the positions, persons specified in this article,
shall be carried out under a fixed-term employment contract for the period until
such persons leave for childcare.” - This Law shall enter into force on the day following the day of its
publication.
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Result
According to forecasts of the socio-economic and other consequences of the adoption
of the bill, it is assumed that the new law, after its vote, will ensure the preservation of employment for persons who are on parental leave until the child reaches the age of three.
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