The Legislative Decree on leaves, absences and permits was published in the Official Gazette number 173 on July 27th, 2011. The purpose of the decree, according to its Article 1, is also to “rationalize and simplify the documents to be sent” in order to enjoy leaves from work and, to this end, the maternity leave is made more flexible. In addition, in case of either termination of pregnancy after 180 days or untimely death of the child, the female employee could return to work, with a notice period of 10 days and upon a favorable opinion of the doctor. Changes have also been provided for parental leave, which may be extended for parents who have children with serious disabilities. Finally, the decree modifies also the regulation concerning adoption and fostering, care for disabled and leaves for training.