Ontario mayors and municipal councillors who become parents while in office will now get a 20-week parental leave.
Under the current act, a council member's seat is considered vacated if they are absent from meetings for more than 12 weeks without permission from their colleagues.
Kitchener-Centre MPP Daiene Vernile introduced a private member’s bill to amend the Municipal Act to guarantee up to 20 weeks off for new parents.
It passed on Thursday with support from all parties.
Kitchener councillor Kelly Galloway-Sealock recently gave birth to her third child and began lobbying for clarity in the Municipal Act when her first child was born in 2013.
Standard parental leave across Canada is one year.
