New mothers across sectors may get paid maternity leave up to six months
The proposal for extending the maternity leave under the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961, received a green signal from Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to be implemented in government and private sectors.
Union Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya on Thursday reportedly "expressed his ministry's readiness" to bring an amendment to Maternity Benefit Act to revise the duration of maternity leave from 12 weeks at present to 26 weeks.
'26 WEEKS MATERNITY LEAVE FOR WOMEN': @Dattatreya- EXCLUSIVE pic.twitter.com/gOPZprMTXZ
— Zee Business (@ZeeBusiness) July 1, 2016
Paid maternity leave in India is currently for a maximum of three months or 12 weeks.
This is below the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Maternity Protection Convention which mandates a minimum of 14 weeks of maternity benefit to women.
If the cabinet approves the proposal, India will be among the 40 countries that have extended their paid maternity leaves over a span of 18 weeks.
Companies that have already amended their paid maternity leave policy even before the cabinet approval are Urban Ladder, Flipkart, Accenture, Godrej and HUL.
(With inputs from PTI report)
Get Latest Business News, Stock Market Updates and Videos; Check your tax outgo through Income Tax Calculator and save money through our Personal Finance coverage. Check Business Breaking News Live on Zee Business Twitter and Facebook. Subscribe on YouTube.
RECOMMENDED STORIES
Retirement Planning: SIP+SWP combination; Rs 15,000 monthly SIP for 25 years and then Rs 1,52,000 monthly income for 30 years
Retirement Calculator: 40 years of age, Rs 50,000 monthly expenses; what should be retirement corpus and monthly investment
SBI 444-day FD vs Union Bank of India 333-day FD: Know maturity amount on Rs 4 lakh and Rs 8 lakh investments for general and senior citizens
EPF vs SIP vs PPF Calculator: Rs 12,000 monthly investment for 30 years; which can create highest retirement corpus
Home loan EMI vs Mutual Fund SIP Calculator: Rs 70 lakh home loan EMI for 20 years or SIP equal to EMI for 10 years; which can be easier route to buy home; know maths
02:50 PM IST