Maternity Leave

In the UAE, maternity benefits are governed by the UAE Labour Law. According to Article 30 of the law, a female employee is entitled to a maternity leave of 45 days, which includes the period before and after childbirth. However, if the employee has completed one year of continuous service with the employer, she may be entitled to a maternity leave of 60 days. During this period, the employee is entitled to full pay, which is calculated based on her basic salary. It's important to note that these provisions apply to female employees in the private sector.

Here is a breakdown of three major changes to the entitlements of new mums who are working in the UAE’s private sector.

1. Total maternity leave duration – 60 days from 45 days previously

While earlier women were entitled to a 45-day maternity leave, the new UAE Labour Law has provided women with a total of 60 days maternity leave, with the following break up in salary entitlements:

a. The first 45 days with full pay.

b. The next 15 days with half pay.

2. Additional leave entitlements, due to medical reasons

The earlier labour law provided regulations in Article 30 for when a working mother may need to be absent from work due to health-related complications,?allowing for 100 additional days of leave without pay, provided it is applied for with the necessary medical certificates.

However, the new UAE Labour Law breaks down the additional medical leave entitlements, which may arise due to the health conditions of the mother or child in the following ways:

Article 30 (2) states that if a female worker exhausts her maternity leave, she may be absent from?work without pay for no more than 45 successive or interrupted days, if such absence is due to illness occurring to her or her child as a result of pregnancy or delivery and preventing her to report to work. “Such illness shall be proved by a medical certificate issued by the medical institution, and such period shall not be counted in the period of service for which the female worker is entitled to severance pay or subscription to the pension system according to the legislation in force in the UAE.”

Different rules may apply to government employees or those working in free zones. It is advisable to consult the UAE Labour Law or seek legal advice for specific details and any recent updates regarding maternity benefits.