Maternity Benefits Extended: How Will This Impact Women Employees in India?

Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Bill Update

It has now become certain that the benefits for women employees will be extended any time after the assent of the Honorable President of India on the Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Bill, which will take the shape of an Act. The Rajya Sabha has also passed the new amendment act on maternity benefits.

As per the information dated 10 August 2016 by the Press Information Bureau, the following are the salient features of the amendment act that was earlier approved by the cabinet:

Key Features of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 Amendment

The Maternity Benefit Act of 1961 protects the employment of women during maternity and entitles them to a 'maternity benefit'—i.e., fully paid leave from work—to care for their child. The act applies to all establishments employing 10 or more persons. The amendments will benefit approximately 18 lakh women in the organized sector.

Amendments to the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961

- Increase maternity benefit from 12 weeks to 26 weeks for two surviving children and 12 weeks for more than two children.
- 12 weeks of maternity benefit for a 'commissioning mother' and 'adopting mother.'
- Facilitate 'work from home.'
- Mandatory provision of a crèche for establishments with 50 or more employees.

Justification for the Amendments

- Maternal care during early childhood is crucial for the growth and development of the child.
- The 44th, 45th, and 46th Indian Labour Conferences recommended the enhancement of maternity benefits to 24 weeks.
- The Ministry of Women & Child Development proposed to enhance maternity benefits to 8 months.
- In tripartite consultations, all stakeholders generally supported the amendment proposal.

Regards

Mandatory Employment of Women in the Private Sector

Considering the number of posts we get on this forum regarding the reluctance of private employers to grant maternity leave, what B. Sanjay says seems likely. The amendment is certainly desirable because infancy is a crucial time for the overall healthy growth of an individual, but I am afraid that it would become counterproductive. One way to stop the private sector from doing this is to make it mandatory for them to employ women as a certain percentage of the workforce, just like it is mandatory for listed companies to have at least one female member on their board of directors.

Regards

Of course, Sanjay Bhostekar's and Saibhakta's apprehension can be proved to be true to some extent, and the companies can become choosy in selecting women candidates as their employees. But talent has its own importance. A company won't like to lose the opportunity to select talented and performance-oriented women as their employees. Of course, rigid norms for the selection of women candidates cannot be overruled on the part of some companies.

It will be difficult for a newly married woman to find a job, and she may be forced to postpone her plans for maternity leave. ESIC needs to amend its provisions regarding maternity leave.