City council in Edmonton could adopt first-in-Canada parental leave plan.

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Meeshika Sharma
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According to the current rules, the mayor and council are not permitted to miss more than eight consecutive weeks of council meetings, unless that absence is authorized by the rest of council.

But Edmonton's city council is one step closer to approving a first-in-Canada policy that would allow sitting councillors to take up to six months of parental leave after the birth or adoption of a child.

The proposed policy would allow councillors to take 10 weeks off from work with full pay to be covered by the city. The policy also proposes elected officials could also take up to another 16 weeks off from work, or work part-time from home, with the remuneration to be determined based on their work.

Councillors would be responsible for determining who would cover constituent concerns while absent.

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