Maternity Leave & Parental leave

Employment rights have changed considerably from the days when it was automatically expected that once married a woman would stop working outside the home. Even if she maintained her employment, a pregnancy generally signified immediate resignation, because it was not socially acceptable for it to be otherwise.

Social norms and economic restraints have altered all this radically and today many women, whether married or single mothers, very often choose to stay in employment throughout pregnancy and beyond. Without going into the merits of whether this is right or wrong, one has to accept it as a social situation which is flourishing.

Different legislation has seen to these changing personal and social needs and moved on accordingly. However, speaking to different women about this matter still shows vividly that many are somewhat unsure of what their rights as pregnant mothers are and consequently end up making erroneous decisions which damage both their career and financial situation.

Dr. Roberta Lepre is a Gender Liaison Officer at the National Commission for the Promotion of Equality working at an EU-funded project entitled 'Gender Mainstreaming -  The Way Forward.' The Commission itself works towards bridging gender differences by promoting infrastructural changes. In a bid to help employers re-consider gender issues, it assists by advocating a change in work practises to support people with care responsibilities whether these be men or women. 'Care responsibilities are not shouldered only by women, although this seems to be the common misconception. Care is not required solely by babies and young children, but also by older children who succumb to illness, ailing partners, elderly parents, etc. This basic care and the domestic tasks related to it is must be shouldered by whoever becomes responsible and carer.'

First and foremost it is important to stress that a pregnant woman employee is protected by the law and whilst pregnant she cannot be sacked from her job or forced to resign. She has a right to remain in employment and can avail of a series of rights which are stipulated by law.

Namely a pregnant woman has the right to attend anti-natal examinations or medical appointments even during job hours, and is entitled to time off without loss of pay or any other benefit. The employer may always request the relevant documentation indicating appointment times or proving the actual attendance for such examinations.

With regards to her job, her employer is bound by law to gauge any health risks to which the pregnant or breast-feeding woman is exposed and change her tasks accordingly, in order to ensure her safety and that of her child. Measures taken must be satisfactory to the Occupational Health and Safety Authority. If the health risks are serious enough to call for a change in tasks, the employee has the right to be given alternative ones. Once the pregnancy and breast-feeding period is over or the health risks are no longer deemed existent, she would have the right to be re-instated in her previous position without consequences to her career.

What happens in case the health hazard cannot be removed completely? 'There do exist special maternity leave stipulations which can be adopted, so it is always wise to ask the advise of the Commission on this detail. This is a paid-for period not longer than eight weeks.'

Then there is maternity leave. Many people know that a woman is entitled both to maternity and parental leave but there seems to be great confusion on specific details. Dr Lepre explains further. 'Every pregnant woman is to be allowed maternity leave. The law indicates that employees who work 40 hours per week, are entitled to a minimum of 14 weeks maternity leave, 13 weeks of which are totally paid, and one week which is unpaid. Women who work 20 hours and over get a pro-rata entitlement.  These are minimum entitlements and may differ according to individual contracts or collective agreements. However they can only be increased and not decreased.'

Maternity leave can be taken for a period of 14 weeks - four weeks must be taken before the birth, and six weeks must be taken after. The remaining balance of days may be taken according to specific needs. Whichever option is taken, the employer must be informed of these decisions so that arrangements can be made accordingly.

'It is important to stress here that a woman who is pregnant is entitled to these rights whether she is a part-timer, a full-timer or working on reduced hours. It is also necessary for women to be aware that they cannot be discriminated against because they are pregnant, or because they are sick during the pregnancy, just as they cannot be forced to miss a promotion, cannot be sacked or threatened to lose a job because of their condition. And a woman cannot be denied the right to apply for a job or to be considered for one because of a pregnancy.'

Most people have several serious misconceptions linked to parental leave entitlement. For one thing it is important to point out that parental leave is allowed both to women and men, so either of the parents can enjoy this right. Another serious misconception is this:

Rebecca, a young woman who works in a factory wishes to have a child but says, 'I will have to return to full time factory hours once the baby is three months old. Who will care for my child then and how can I leave a three-month old baby? I will  have to leave my job!'

Dr. Lepre replies, 'This is a very common mistake people make because they are misinformed.  Although parental leave is unpaid, it is a right each parent has and he or she can make use of this leave entitlement up until their child is eight years old! Parents are thus entitled to six months' worth of parental leave between them, although individual leave allowance is not transferable between the parents.  The three months need not be taken choc-a-block but can be staggered according to individual needs.'

So, for instance, an agreement can be reached with the employer so that a full-time employee who normally works for eight hours daily, five days a week, could opt to work five hours a day to total 25 hours a week. On this basis she can part-time for about eight months. She could make arrangements to have half-day baby-sitting assistance and have half a day with the baby herself, without losing the job and yet enjoying the baby during the most critical period of the first year. Incidentally if she divides this caring period with her partner, she may be able to work even more hours each day, without jeopardising any commitments.

For unexpected occurrences there is also the option of utilising what is known as Urgent Family Leave which allows 15 hours of time off work (pro rata)  in the case of urgent family reasons.

'Women are being encouraged to offer the option of telework whereby they continue to carry out part of their tasks at home, thereby not creating undue pressure on their employer's resources. We also promote reduced hours and career breaks as valid options.'

But what if an agreement is not reached between employer and employee? Reports of discrimination on the job, missed promotions, forced resignations and the threat of redundancy are ever present but the Equality Act for Men and Women, up and running since 2003, should put paid to such dangers and the setting up of the Commission is seeing to this.

'Employers seem to be unaware of the fact that training a new employee because a pregnant employee is forced to resign, means losing out on time, expertise and money in the long run. On the other hand, many women do not take action against such measures because of a general lack of empowerment or a lack of knowledge of their basic rights.'

Dr. Lepre indicates a basic outline of the procedures taken up by the Commission whenever an employee lodges a report. 'Usually people approach our offices with questions, then if they decide they want to go through with their complaint against an employer, they are helped to fill up a form which will allow the Commission to initiate investigations. Following these, we assess the case in question and try to find a solution. There are a number of options. Either the case is referred to the courts or to the industrial tribunal or else we opt for mediation, which is always the best solution all round.'

What happens if a woman finds out that she's pregnant during her probation period? 'During the probation period any employee can be dismissed without the employer being obliged to state a reason behind the dismissal. So if the employee reveals her pregnancy early on, she may well lose her job at such an early stage.' It all boils down to the individual employer's point of view on the matter and the nature of the job in question. However it can be a somewhat risky predicament. The employee should gauge the length of her probation and weigh her options carefully in the circumstances before committing herself to a decision.

Whilst laws seem technically fine on paper, there still appears to be a wide chasm between the written law and the applied law. Needless to say, there is still a lot to be done to help women cope with employment and motherhood and mothers' rights are tantamount in this evolving world of ours if we are to keep encouraging them to maintain their stronghold both within the family and further afield. Unless carers are assisted further by being accomodated at the workplace, one risks seeing our birth rates plunging further down the scale. The economic consequences of this trend could be far reaching, creating a very real imbalance in the society and hence workplace of tomorrow.

Article prepared by Ms Marika Azzopardi

Marika Azzopardi is a freelance writer and journalist. Although she has been writing 'all her life', publicly she has been writing prolifically for the past 12 years. A frequent contributor to national English language papers published in Malta and varied magazines, she enjoys writing about 'human stories', art and whatever involves feminine issues. Also the author of children's books and short stories, she likes to delve into fiction from time to time.

These features originally appeared in print in 2006 on The Sunday Times - Classifieds Section, as part of a series discussing the issues of women workers in Malta.