Questions on Legal Obligations
Questions have been raised on whether it is legally mandatory for the employer to communicate the recent amendments made in the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961 to all employees (either written or electronically) once it takes effect.
Communication of Amendments
What is inserted in the amendment is that every establishment shall intimate in writing and electronically to every woman at the time of her initial appointment regarding every benefit available under the Act. So, what about existing employees? There are a few organizations that do not want to explicitly communicate the changes to existing employees, though they are absolutely okay with providing all the benefits once the employee initiates maternity leave.
From India, Bangalore
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Questions have been raised on whether it is legally mandatory for the employer to communicate the recent amendments made in the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961 to all employees (either written or electronically) once it takes effect.
Communication of Amendments
What is inserted in the amendment is that every establishment shall intimate in writing and electronically to every woman at the time of her initial appointment regarding every benefit available under the Act. So, what about existing employees? There are a few organizations that do not want to explicitly communicate the changes to existing employees, though they are absolutely okay with providing all the benefits once the employee initiates maternity leave.
From India, Bangalore
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What do you mean by explicitly communicating the changes? It is the duty of the employer to inform all women employees about the amendment. If you do not communicate on your own, it sends a wrong signal. Please be transparent in legal matters.
From India, New Delhi
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631From India, New Delhi
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I agree. But, this is not my opinion, but a question raised to me, and I wanted to be clear on legal terms. The query raised was that an employer was of the opinion that they should not communicate that maternity laws have changed to 26 weeks to existing employees. But, I disagreed and told them exactly what you said. But then I was questioned, "Is it mentioned anywhere in the law that we HAVE to communicate?" Hence, the requirement for me to raise the question.
From India, Bangalore
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From India, Bangalore
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You put a notice explaining the new amendment to the maternity benefit Act.Do it after the amendment comes to effect. Mention the same in the future appointment orders also.
From India, Thiruvananthapuram
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From India, Thiruvananthapuram
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Everything cannot be mentioned in law. Employers have to be proactive and communicate accordingly. Employees do not have complete knowledge about various laws/benefits they are entitled to. Consequently, a lot of money is spent by state and central governments to inform everyone about various benefits and amendments for employees.
From India, New Delhi
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From India, New Delhi
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There are certain unwritten laws, also known as business ethics . Therefore, communicating welfare schemes of employees becomes ethical duty on employer’s part.
From India, Pune
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From India, Pune
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Maternity Benefit Amendment Act 2017_03.04.2017 .pdf