Navigating Maternity Leave Extensions: How Should We Handle This Employee's Request?

Hi, I work for an organization based out of Delhi. One of our employees who proceeded on maternity leave, after completing the leave period, has written an email saying that since she does not have anyone at home to take care of the baby, she wants to extend her leave by a further 2 months. I would require suggestions on the following:

a) Can we extend her leave on these grounds (I suppose the leave can be extended on receipt of a letter from the medical practitioner)?

b) For how long can her leave be extended?

c) Can we deny her the leave?

d) What if she does not return after the leave period; can we terminate her services on those grounds?

Thanks in advance for your replies.

What is the maternity leave (ML) period in your company? Normally, companies provide ML for three to six months. If she has privilege leave in her tray, she can avail of that. If your company offers childcare leave, she can also avail of that. If you are able to manage without her, then what's the problem? It all depends on you. If you need more clarification, please call me.

Regards,
Anusha
HR Professional
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

On humanitarian grounds, she may be given an extension of leave, but not as paid leave. The idea of terminating a woman employee who has gone on maternity leave does not sound healthy.

Regards,
Pon

Maternity Leave Extension and Workplace Support

She can ask for an extension of maternity leave for up to 1 month in case of complications post-delivery. For that, she needs to submit Form C (doctor's certificate of pregnancy) and Form F (receipt of Maternity benefit).

She can be treated as Leave Without Pay (LWP) post 1 month after the end of 6 weeks following the date of childbirth. However, that would be counterproductive.

If she is a valued employee and the cost of replacement is high or retention is necessary, she can be allowed to bring her child to work with space provided by the company and be allowed 2-4, 15-minute nursing breaks.

Trust me, you should set up a small area where the baby can be kept in a cot and is secure (quiet). This will go a long way in sending the right signals to other women in the organization and be an Organizational Development (OD) initiative.

Giving her extra leave will not solve the issue as she can only ask someone to look after her baby when she is gone for a maximum of 2-3 months, considering she can find someone. In the meantime, she might either quit or look for another job.

In the end, the function and company would lose, whereas the cost would be nothing.

In her case, after the completion of her maternity leave, she can take her annual leave. After that, she is required to come back to work. Since she took maternity leave, she had enough time to arrange for the baby to be taken care of once the leave ends. She had more than 45 days to plan her return, plus up to a 30-day annual leave extension. Therefore, there is no excuse for not coming back to work. If she does not return to work, she can either take leave without pay or terminate her employment to take care of her baby.

On the other hand, in Europe, they have arrangements for employees to work from home if she is dispensable. However, you need approved rules for it.

Regards

Types of Leave Available

What kinds of leave does she have to her credit right now, which she is otherwise eligible to avail had she not gone on maternity leave?

Subject: Re: Extension of Maternity Leave

I guess providing an extension of maternity leave will propagate the wrong culture in the company. Taking care of a baby in the initial few months has always been a problem or an area of concern for many employees. If this extension is allowed, definitely others will also apply for the same, or on some other grounds. The possible solutions could be:

1. Leave without pay.
2. Apply for other types of leave that are still available.
3. Bring the baby to the workplace.
4. Allow taking on assignments to work from home.

Regards,
Minal Maheshwari
HR student

Importance of Flexibility in Maternity Leave

It is important for mothers to care for their children. Companies should be flexible in granting leave without pay. In cases where positions require the employee, management must arrange a replacement well in advance so that it does not affect the business.

Regards,
Pierson David

Maternity Leave and Sick Benefit Leave

As per the Maternity Act of 1961, an employee may be allowed 6 weeks of leave before confinement and 6 weeks after confinement. Sick benefit leave may be availed after the completion of the aforementioned 12 weeks of leave if certified correct by the approved medical authorities. Otherwise, if an employee is availing leave after the eligible 12 weeks, the leave availed would be considered as leave under loss of pay unless she has leave credit in her leave account.

Dear All, Thank you for your valued suggestions. Now, she does not have enough leave to her credit; she has already exhausted all of that. However, as Pon says, “on humanitarian grounds,” we have sanctioned another one month, but she insists on two months. It's not that the work will suffer, but what if tomorrow she wants to extend the leave further? I too am against termination.

@Anuradha> That's a great suggestion to have a small area allocated for the baby; however, for a midsize company like us, it would not be feasible.

Regards

I believe it's time for people to start having a positive view of a mother's crucial role. Child Care leave, if applicable, is the best way to extend the child care required during infancy. Though technically, 12 weeks is the legal provision of ML, mothers can be expected to wish to extend this period by making use of other leave available to them. Ideally, organizations should be supportive of maternal requirements in such cases. Even the leave sanctioning authorities, at some point in their lives, must have faced the same situation back home. It's not a female employee's fault if she wishes to be as good a mother as she wishes to be a professional. It's all about how positive the HR policies are in one's organization. Every working mother does have a right to be a caring mother too. It is medically required of her to ideally breastfeed the baby for six months and not give the baby any other supplements. Even nursing breaks would not be enough if the baby has to solely depend on the mother's feed. So, if she can plan her motherhood by managing her leave, the organization should not try to find ways her leave can be denied.

Could anyone please let me know if the law specifies anything regarding taking maternity leave for the second time? My question is: Can a company impose restrictions on the number of times maternity leave can be taken during the period of employment?