The ACTU has opened the landmark work and family test case calling for a new safety net for workers to help them balance "work-life collisions". The ACTU is seeking a doubling of unpaid parental leave from 12 to 24 months, and the right for workers to return part-time after having a baby. It also wants workers to be able to "buy" up to six weeks' extra annual leave and request changes to start and finish times to accommodate family duties. ACTU advocate Cath Bowtell told the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) in Melbourne that the demands of work often put families under intense strain. "The impact of this collision is often severe and too often it is workers and their families who are absorbing the impact of the work-life collision," she said.