Is Paid Maternity Leave Mandatory for Our 30-Employee LLP in Pune? Seeking Guidance!

Our company is an LLP located in Pune, Maharashtra, with 30 employees. So, is it mandatory to provide our employees with paid maternity leave for 26 weeks? Please guide me on the same because I read somewhere that companies with more than 50 employees are only eligible to offer maternity leave to employees.

Maternity Benefit Act is applicable to your organization once you have engaged 10 employees. As per the recent amendment, Maternity Leaves are extended to 8 weeks before the delivery and 18 weeks after the delivery.

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Dear Mugdha,

I think somebody has confused you between maternity facility and creche facility. Maternity benefits are applicable to female associates once the company employs 10 or more associates, and creche facility is applicable once the employment count reaches 50. Thus, yes, you need to give the benefit of 26 weeks of maternity leave to your staff.

Dear Members,

Can you give clarity with regard to:

1. Creche facility
a) Does it specify that the count should reach 50 in number for female associates in the company?
b) 50 in mixed numbers in that particular branch?
c) 50 in mixed numbers for the total employee count in the company.

2. What's the alternative to a creche?
a) Late sign-in/Early sign-off for the day.
b) Payment in lieu for a nearby creche facility.

3. Rejoining after Maternity Leave
a) How many months of Leave Without Pay (LOP) can be officially given after 6 months of Maternity Leave?

Thank you.

Dear Jayashree, please find responses to your queries as below:

Creche facility

The count of 50 in the amendment is specified without any categorization; thus, it is better to consider the total number of employees rather than only counting female employees. Additionally, you may want to consider this on a per-branch basis.

What's the alternative to a creche?

There is no alternative given in lieu of a creche in the act. However, you can make payments in lieu to a nearby creche, but this arrangement should be agreed upon by the organization, and the payment or adjustment should be handled by the organization, not the employee. Furthermore, considering you are from Mumbai, the new amendments that are about to be implemented, if passed, or the Maharashtra Shops and Establishment Act, specify that the creche should be within a 1 KM radius.

Rejoining after maternity leave

The act only specifies Maternity Leave and not any Loss of Pay (LOP), thus it is solely at the company's discretion to allow or disallow it.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Kamble.

Looking forward to the notification, with visibility for employees and employers, and a clear execution process for people in the organization for implementation.