The Maternity Bill - A step in the right direction but is it enough

On August 11, 2016, the Rajya Sabha passed the Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Bill 2016. This act regulates the employment of women during the period of child birth and adoption giving them entitlement to maternity benefits. The law is applicable to all employers employing 10 or more people. The amendments will come into effect once the same is passed in the Lok Sabha and receives presidential assent thereafter.

The need for change

According to the new country specific study by the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI), if 68 million more women were added to the non-farm labour force over the next decade, India stands to gain the most (in percentage terms over current base) with an overall gross domestic product (GDP) being boosted by $700 billion in 2025.

Unfortunately, women in the Indian economy are under-represented. The study also states that women’s contribution to GDP in India is below the global average of 37%. India is one of the few countries where the rate of participation of women in the workforce has drastically declined in the last decade. It fell from 33.7% in 1991 to 24% in 2014, according to UN gender statistics.

But, why are women leaving the workforce in the first place? Well statistics as per the 2012 McKinsey report, Women Matter – An Asian Perspective, show that a higher percentage of working women from mid to senior positions in India are leaving their plush careers to care for their children. Lack of good child care options and inflexibility at workplace often forces women to put their roles as mothers before their own professional growth.

Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Bill 2016 definitely is a great new step towards bridging the gender gap at workplaces. The bill not just allows mothers to care for their new born in the crucial first six months but also mandates employers to have a cre?che/ child care facility. This certainly benefits working mothers who currently have no support to care for their child and thereby allows seamless transition back to work.

Areas to be addressed

Though the bill is a great start towards ensuring that women can continue to contribute to the economy of India, it still lacks some clarity. For one, the law’s silence on paternity leave is questionable. It further reinforces the age old social norm that childcare is exclusively the mother’s responsibility. The fact that only maternity leave has a statutory backing and paternity leave doesn’t, threatens gender diversity and equality at workplaces as employers may prefer to hire more men over women. We in our experience as child care providers see fathers increasingly involved in the care and growth of the child and it would be a welcome sign to see the government recognize this and possibly look at it as parenting leave as against only maternity leave.

To accelerate the long journey towards gender equality at workplaces, it is imperative that we stop thinking of childcare and household chores as exclusive only to women. If one were to look at the Nordic countries, we can see that they have closed over 80% gender gap.

The one thing that stands out in achieving this, is the introduction of family or paternity leave policies for the workforce much earlier on. Such policies allow both men and women to take time off from their careers for child or elder care and lets them return to the workforce at the same level.

Further, an increase in the maternity leave to 26 weeks, means an increase in the total cost to company for employers. The prominent question that lingers with this amendment is - whether employers would be offered any subsidy or rebate to ease this financial burden? Essentially now a woman who is being hired in a child bearing age is going to be seen as a more expensive hire if there is no support from the government to employers.

In addition, the provision requires employers to provide cre?che/ childcare facilities within a ‘prescribed distance’, but it, in its current form, fails to define what qualifies as a prescribed distance. However, considering women will be allowed four visits to the cre?che in a day, our understanding is that the distance needs to be close enough for easy and economical access to them.

Exciting times ahead

We at Founding Years offer childcare solutions that best suit an employer’s needs in an effort to bring women back to workplaces. With our onsite daycare, nearsite daycare and subsidy solutions, we have provided many corporate offices in India a safe and secure space for children to grow and flourish offering both care and education under the same offering making it easier for mothers to return to work. This has allowed employers to not just retain their women employees but has also allowed working parents to now, in a guilt-free manner, pursue their careers while staying close to their child.

Our focus is not just on catering to the employer’s needs but also to that of its employees. We offer guidance to parents on finer nuances of child care, guilt-free parenting, women’s health and work-life balance. We also help our parents and kids engage in activities that help them bond and share moments together.

With the changes that will come about with the Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Bill 2016, we are equipped with the right knowledge and expertise to guide and assist employers with their child care needs and are hoping for a much needed inflexion point in decision-making around childcare facilities for companies, a large proportion of who still think of this as a cost element and not an investment towards better gender diversity.

We of course have had our share of early adopters and champions, like ABB, Accenture, Adobe, Airtel, Amadeus, Asian Paints, Flipkart, Genpact, Godrej, Happiest Minds, HUL, IBM, IKEA, ITC, Johnson & Johnson, JP Morgan Chase, Landmark, L’Oreal, Manhattan, Procter & Gamble, Reliance Life Sciences, Royal Bank of Scotland, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Shroff, Taj Hotels Ujjivan Financial Services, who have made very progressive calls in providing child care facilities in onsite, nearsite and subsidized models.

We could like to hear your thoughts as well on the Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Bill 2016. It would be great if you could fill up this quick survey for us to understand your views on the same.

Overview of Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Bill 2016:

Duration of maternity leave:

The bill increases the duration of the maternity leave to 26 weeks from the earlier 12 weeks.

• Under the Act, this maternity benefit should not be availed before six weeks from the date of expected delivery. The Bill changes this to eight weeks.

• In case of a woman who has two or more children, the maternity benefit will continue to be 12 weeks, which cannot be availed before six weeks from the date of the expected delivery.

Maternity leave for adoptive and commissioning mothers:

• The Bill introduces a provision to grant 12 weeks of maternity leave to:

(i)  a woman who legally adopts a child below three months of age; and 

(ii)  a commissioning mother. A commissioning mother is defined as a biological mother who uses her egg to create an embryo implanted in a surrogate.

• The 12-week period of maternity benefit will be calculated from the date the child is handed over to the adoptive or commissioning mother.

Option to work from home:

The Bill introduces a provision that states that an employer may allow women to work from home after the period of maternity leave for a duration that is mutually decided by both the parties.

Cre?che facilities:

The Bill introduces a provision which requires every employer with 50 or more employees to provide cre?che facilities within a prescribed distance. The woman will be allowed four visits to the cre?che in a day. This will include her interval for rest.

Informing women employees of the right to maternity leave:

The Bill introduces a provision which requires every employer to intimate a woman at the time of her appointment of the maternity benefits available to her. Such communication must be in writing and electronically.

References:

• 2012 McKinsey report, Women Matter – An Asian Perspective; https://www.boardagender.org/stats- reports/apac/207-mckinsey-company-women-matter-an-asian-perspective-2012

• The Lasting Impact of Employer-Sponsored Childcare Centers; https://www.brighthorizons.com/~/media/baaef6571dc04ae4802d735ec39b6745.pdf

• 2014 Global Gender Gap Index (Source: World Economic Forum) https://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2014/rankings/

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