Navigating Maternity Leave in IT: Paid or Unpaid, and What About Other Leaves?

Hi Readers,

I am working in an IT company and wanted to inquire about the maternity leave policy for an employee whose performance is not up to the manager's expectations since her joining. I have the following doubts that need to be cleared:

1. Are the 90 days considered as Leave Without Pay (LWP) or paid leaves?
2. If we pay her, should we consider the basic pay?
3. The company is not covered under ESI, and there is no medical insurance, etc.
4. Are Casual Leave (CL), Sick Leave (SL), and Earned Leave (EL) a part of maternity leave?

Please suggest.

Regards,
Vandana Sharma

You are a very old member of CiteHR. Please search the old threads as this topic has been discussed many times before using the 'research' feature at the top of this page.

Maternity Leave and Performance

However, please note that performance has nothing to do with Maternity Leaves. You mentioned '...since joining...'. When did she join? This will have a bearing on her eligibility for ML.

Even if we consider your note about her performance to be correct, it's a bit impractical to fire her now. Any such action could be construed as a signal that the Company is not willing to grant her maternity leave.

Regards,
TS

Dear Vandana,

Objective of the Maternity Act

The objective of the Maternity Act is to protect the dignity of motherhood, ensuring that a woman can take special care of the health of the newborn and herself. Maternity benefits are a compliance requirement, not a choice. Even if the performance of the lady is not up to expectations, she is entitled to avail of maternity benefits. Since your company is not covered under ESI, you have to provide her with the entitlements.

Leave Entitlements

The casual leave (CL), sick leave (SL), and earned leave (EL) should not be part of the maternity leave entitlements. For more details, you can search online or purchase the related Act book from an authorized distributor (Jaina Book Agency, Gupta Book Agency, etc.). You will find more information there.

Regards

Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 Overview

For those employees not covered under ESI, including those in IT companies, the maternity benefit is regulated by the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.

At the national level, the Act applies to establishments having ten or more employees. Some states have removed this limit of 10 employees.

Eligibility for Maternity Benefits

To be eligible for the benefit, a woman should work under the employer for more than 80 days in the period of 12 months prior to the expected date of confinement. If so, the employee is entitled to 84 days of benefit, i.e., leave with salary. This is 42 days before and 42 days after confinement. In addition, she is eligible for the benefit for 30 more days if she suffers from any diseases arising out of pregnancy, childbirth, etc.

Casual leave, sick leave, etc., are in addition to maternity benefits.

Regards,
Varghese Mathew
[Phone Number Removed For Privacy Reasons]

Hi Vandhana,

Please have the employee who wishes to avail maternity leave sign a Form-B. Normally, the gross salary is considered for the payment. Refer to Section 3(n) of the MB Act-1961.

Hi,

Can anyone confirm for me the 12-month period? Is it calculated from her Date of Joining (DOJ) or the financial year? Please clarify, seniors.