Development of legal regulations of parental allowance in 1996 - 2009

The system of the state social support was established on 1st October 1995 when Act No. 117/1995 Coll. on social state support took effect. This Bachelor´s thesis, the title of which is "Development of legal regulations of parental allowance in 1996 {--} 2009``, is focused on the key benefit of the state social support - the parental allowance. It is a benefit independent on the height of income of the qualified person and is intended for a parent who personally and duly cares for a child while meeting other requirements needed to draw this allowance such as child´s age and health condition. The introduction of the parental allowance pursued an aim to make care for a child better and to improve social conditions of families with small children. The aim of the thesis is to map the development of the parental allowance since its beginning and to point out pros and cons of the legal regulations contained in Act No. 117/1995 Coll., on state social support. Since 1995 the legal regulations of the parental allowance have undergone a lot of more or less fundamental changes. Originally the height of the allowance was dependent on the living minimum and on the fact whether a parent is supported or not. Afterwards the amount of the allowance was determined by the height of the average salary in the non-productive sphere of the economy. The last big change brought about an allowance provided at several rates that are set at fixed amounts according to duration of drawing whereas the parents elect the period and amount of the allowance. In January 1998 a new system was established - a child may attend a day care centre or other pre-school facility in the maximum range stipulated by law, without a parent losing a claim to the payment of the parental allowance. The law has not forgotten about disabled children and their parents. It goes without saying that a disabled child requires more financial resources from a family. The attitude to the earning power of a parent has changed as well. Since January 2008 parents have been able to select the period of the parental allowance providing they are entitled to get a maternity benefit. Experience has shown that it was a correct step. The parents who had been working before their child was born have a better position. The purpose of the thesis was fulfilled: the most important changes of the legal regulations of the parental allowance have been mapped and analyzed in details since the parental allowance was established in 1995. Then based on the analysis of documents, it was found out that the last amendment to Act No. 117/1995 Coll., on state social support effective as of 1st January 2008, had led to better directness of the allowances and to stagnation of the volume of financial resources used for payments