Maternity Leave
The rules on maternity leave are specified in the Labour Act.
The general duration of maternity leave is fourteen weeks and comprises seven weeks before and seven weeks after the confinement. If confinement occurs after the anticipated date, prenatal leave is extended accordingly with no consequent reduction in postnatal leave. Compared with the 1992 Code, the maternity leave is raised by two weeks, from 12 to 14 weeks, under the Labour Act, 2024.
In order to avail the maternity leave, a pregnant female employee must give notice of her anticipated confinement. She must submit a written certificate signed by a medical officer certifying that the employee’s confinement will probably take place within seven weeks from the date of that certificate.
Within 7 days immediately after her confinement, a female employee must deliver to her employer a written certificate signed by a medical officer certifying the date of confinement.
If the pregnant woman suffers any illness or has any complications while being pregnant, they can be allowed to take an extra leave of one week (total post-natal leave being eight weeks). In such cases, the employee is required to deliver to her employer a written certificate signed by a medical officer stating that she is unfit to return to work
In the event of birth of a stillborn child, the maternity leave is only three weeks. If the parents adopt a child, they are entitled to a bonding leave of 14 days from the day the child arrives at the family house.
Source: §191 of the Labour Act, 2024 (Act No. 3 of 2024)
Income
Maternity leave is unpaid. There is no legal obligation for employers to pay wages during maternity leave, although a collective agreement or a contract of employment may provide for paid maternity leave.
In accordance with the Wages Notice 2024, the following terms of paid maternity leave are allowed for different sectors, provided that the worker has completed at least one year of service:
- 06 weeks paid maternity leave for textile, clothing and leather manufacturing;
- 12 weeks (6 weeks before confinement and six weeks after confinement) paid maternity leave for all sectors other than those specified in “a” and “c”;
- 06 weeks paid maternity leave for private security sector
The maternity leave benefit is limited to two confinements per employee (for a and b) during her employment with the same employer.
Sources: §191 of the Labour Act, 2024 (Act No. 3 of 2024); Part K of the Labour Code Wages (Minimum Wages) Notice, 2024
