alberta maternity leave

[Chris Vaage]

#97946

Forum: Private

hi there, how does this work in AB ESC when Mat leave is for either 12 or 18 months but AB ESC says no more than 16 weeks?
I am working on an SOP and I cant quite wrap my head around why employment standards so no more than 16 weeks.
As per the Alberta Employment Standards Code, maternity leave will be granted as follows:
• An employee who has been employed by the Society for 90 days, is entitled to a period of not more than 16 weeks starting at any time during the 13 weeks immediately before the estimated date of delivery.

[Chris Vaage]

#97947

I forgot it moves to parental leave after 16 weeks for 37 weeks which totals the year.

[Haley O’Halloran]

#97948

This is a very common point of confusion, so you’re not alone – you were actually almost there already.

The key issue

Alberta Employment Standards (ESC) and EI (federal) use different concepts and timeframes. ESC is about job-protected leave, while EI is about income replacement.

Why Alberta ESC says “no more than 16 weeks”

Under the Alberta Employment Standards Code, leave is split into two distinct types:

1. Maternity Leave (birth parent only)
-Up to 16 weeks
-Can start as early as 13 weeks before the estimated due date
-Ends no later than 16 weeks after birth
-This is specifically tied to pregnancy and recovery from childbirth. That’s why the Code says “not more than 16 weeks” — it is only maternity leave, not the full time away from work.

2. Parental Leave (after maternity leave)

After maternity leave ends, the employee may take parental leave:
-Up to 62 weeks (if maternity leave is taken)
-Up to 63 weeks (if maternity leave is not taken)
-Must begin immediately after maternity leave, unless the employer agrees otherwise

So in practice for a birth parent:

16 weeks maternity leave
up to 62 weeks parental leave
= Up to 78 weeks of job-protected leave

Where the 12-month vs 18-month leave comes from

This part is not employment standards — it’s EI.

EI options:
Standard EI
-15 weeks maternity EI
-35 weeks parental EI
≈ 12 months paid

Extended EI
-15 weeks maternity EI
-61 weeks parental EI
≈ 18 months paid (at a lower weekly rate)

EI does not change Alberta job-protected leave entitlements — it only affects how long benefits are paid and at what rate.

Why your SOP wording felt confusing

Your sentence stops at maternity leave, which makes it sound like the employee can only be off for 16 weeks: “entitled to a period of not more than 16 weeks…”

That’s technically correct but incomplete without the parental leave piece.

Suggested SOP wording

Under the Alberta Employment Standards Code, eligible employees are entitled to maternity and parental leave as follows:
• Maternity Leave: Up to 16 weeks for a birth parent, which may begin at any time during the 13 weeks immediately before the estimated date of delivery.
• Parental Leave: Following maternity leave, an employee is entitled to up to 62 weeks of parental leave, for a combined total of up to 78 weeks of job-protected leave.

Employees may choose to receive EI benefits under either the standard (approximately 12 months) or extended (approximately 18 months) EI option. EI benefit duration does not affect job-protected leave entitlements under Alberta Employment Standards.

Bottom line
-16 weeks = pregnancy/recovery (maternity leave)
-Parental leave is what extends the time off
-12 or 18 months = EI benefit choice, not ESC limits

I hope this helps!
-HRInsider Staff

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