Maternity Benefit Dilemma: Should We Pay Full Benefits if Employee Never Returned?

Hello All,

One of our employees was on maternity leave. We have paid 50% of the maternity benefit, and the remaining amount was supposed to be released once the employee rejoined the office physically after the maternity period. However, the said employee did not rejoin and extended her leave for 6 months. After the extended leave expired, she still did not rejoin and continued to work from home with a 50% salary, never returning to the office. Recently, she has resigned. Now, the management has decided to pay only the remaining 50% of the maternity benefit, as she did not join the office.

The question of maternity benefit payment

The question is whether we should give her the full maternity benefit as per the act or if we can deduct some amount. Please guide.

Maternity Benefit Act of 1961

As per the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961, after its amendment in 2017, it provides for 26 weeks of fully paid leave and the option to work from home on mutually agreed terms. Firstly, there cannot be any conditions attached to the benefit, and it must be paid in full. Failure to meet this obligation is a punishable offense under the Act. Since she has been working from home after her maternity leave, and you have accepted it, she is entitled to be paid. A 50% wage payment seems appropriate if it is mutually agreed upon.

Dear KK!HR,

Your quote, "50% wages appears to be proper if it is mutually agreed so," differs from what our respectable senior member Umakanthan ji stated in the link provided above. Umakanthan ji mentions that maternity benefit is an unconditional employment benefit in recognition of motherhood. Therefore, there cannot be a contract to accept lesser benefits than those provided by law. However, you are of the opinion that mutual acceptance of 50% wages is proper. I am totally confused.

I think, Akhil, that Mr. KK! HR refers only to the payment of salary for the period the employee worked from home and not the 50% of maternity benefit. Even I am compelled to be skeptical about the payment of 50% salary for the work from home because of the sequence of events since the employee proceeded on maternity leave.

Analysis of the Situation

If we carefully analyze the narrative of the poster, after the expiry of the authorized maternity leave, the employee extended her leave for a further period of 6 months, probably on LOP. Afterwards, her rejoining would have been prevented by the lockdown, and hence she would have been permitted to work from home. Work-from-home is an alternative arrangement necessitating a change in the place of work only and does not affect any changes in the existing service conditions. Therefore, the employer is not justified in paying only 50% of the salary for WFH, even under an agreement which amounts to contracting-out. Further, the poster stated that the management has now decided to pay the remaining 50% of the maternity benefit.

In fact, the question of failure to rejoin after maternity leave or overstaying does not arise as the individual extended her leave for six months and afterwards started to work from home.