Women’s rights advocates and workers’ groups hailed a new law that almost doubled the number of days for maternity leave as a major victory for families that would greatly benefit mothers and their babies, and ensure a future generation of healthy and productive Filipinos. President Duterte signed the Expanded Maternity Leave Act on Wednesday, a day before it would have lapsed into law after the bicameral version of the bill was ratified on Jan. 21 by the Senate and the House of Representatives, according to Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea. ADVERTISEMENT The law grants 105 days of paid maternity leave to all working mothers in the government and the private sector, plus an option to extend the period for 30 days without pay. Single mothers will get an extra 15 days in recognition of their “double burden,” according to Sen. Risa Hontiveros, the main proponent of the measure in the Senate. Previously, female employees were entitled to 60 days of paid leave for normal delivery and 78 days for cesarean delivery. The maternity leave will be granted to women at every instance of pregnancy. On the average, Filipino women have only three children, Hontiveros noted. Rejoicing over their ‘baby’ A coalition called Workers 4EML said: “The hardships and sacrifices in advocating for the Expanded Maternity Law is like that of a mother in labor. There is nothing like the joy of seeing the law enacted, much like a mother seeing her baby for the first time. The birth pains are all worth it.” The group includes Akbayan Women, Building and Woodworkers International, Nagkaisa Labor Coalition, IndustriAll, Public Services International, Trade Union Congress Party, Partido Manggagawa, Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa, Public Services Labor Independent Confederation, Kayumanggi, Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Labor Union, Sanofi Aventis Employees Association, United Cavite Workers Organization and Federation of Free Workers. Hontiveros described the new law as a “massive victory for women and their families.” Its enactment, she said, “is a moment mothers, families and children will not only remember, but a victory generations of Filipinos will reap the benefits of for the rest of their lives.” ADVERTISEMENT More bonding time The law will allow mothers to have more time to bond with their newborn and to practice breastfeeding, Hontiveros said. “Now, mothers will have more time to rest from pregnancy. Children will be better fed. Fathers and caregivers can bond and create more lasting memories with their loved ones, as families everywhere receive the greatest gift of all—time,” she added. Women’s party-list group Gabriela said the law faced threats of a veto by Mr. Duterte amid lobbying by private companies worried about its impact on their businesses. “Today, women won over the combined forces of corporate lobby and misogynist mongering against the measure,” said Gabriela Rep. Emmi de Jesus, one of the authors of the original House bill. De Jesus said the law advanced women’s right to maternal health and upheld the security of tenure of pregnant workers. Can be retroactive Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said his department would immediately craft the law’s implementing rules and regulations, including a provision to cover women who gave birth shortly before the law took effect. “A law is always prospective, but it can be retroactive if it is favorable to women,” Bello told reporters. The law should encourage employers to hire more women because they will be happy employees, he said. “When you’re a happy employee, you work well,” Bello said. SSS contribution may be hiked A statement by Social Security System (SSS) president Emmanuel Dooc that SSS members’ monthly contributions may be hiked to fund the additional maternity leaves put a damper on the jubilation. Dooc said a member’s monthly contribution rate may be raised by 12.6 percent this year from 11 percent to cover the additional cost entailed by implementation of the new maternity leave law. The SSS is looking into adding another 0.5-0.6 percentage point to the contribution rate to cover the additional cost of P7.5 billion a year to be incurred. The cost to cover the bigger number of maternity leaves was to be included in the annual budget, but the final version of the bill placed the burden on the SSS, Dooc said. Raymond Mendoza, president of Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), said the expanded maternity leaves would particularly benefit mothers working in the electronics and garments sectors where they are often exposed to dangerous chemicals and tedious work. Healthy workers, higher profits “Working mothers in these challenging industries will now enjoy better working conditions, benefits and services than before,” Mendoza said in a statement. He said the next generation of Filipino workers could be healthier and more productive as the measure ensured more protection for working mothers who nurture them. “The next generation of workers will, at the same time, being healthier translate into higher profits for employers and businesses,” he said. According to TUCP, the 105-day maternity leave is equal to Laos’ and better than Indonesia’s 90 days. It exceeds Myanmar’s 98 days, which is the recommendation of the International Labor Organization. Only Vietnam’s 180-day maternity leave is higher. The law demonstrates the government’s “political will to provide the policy environment that will save our babies from risky pregnancy, address early infancy problems, and protect the lives, health and jobs of our child-bearing working women,” said Eva Arcos, vice president of Associated Labor Unions. —WITH REPORTS FROM LEILA B. SALAVERRIA, CHRISTINE O. AVENDAÑO, JODEE A. AGONCILLO, JEROME ANING, MELVIN GASCON AND BEN O. DE VERA Read Next<doc-sep>MANILA, Philippines — President Duterte has signed into law the Expanded Maternity Leave (EML) bill that will grant additional maternity leave benefits to working mothers, from 60 to 105 days, with an option to extend for an additional 30 days without pay once they give birth. Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea said Duterte signed the EML law on Wednesday, beating the 30-day deadline for the proposed measure to lapse into law. Under the measure passed by Congress, working mothers in the government and private sector are entitled to 105 days of paid maternity leave credits, with seven days transferable to fathers. An additional 15 days will be granted to single mothers. The law also gives female workers an option to extend their leave for another 30 days without pay. Under the previous law, employed mothers are entitled to 60 days of paid leave credits for normal deliveries and 78 days for caesarean deliveries. Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo expressed belief that the measure would not prompt employers to hire more male workers rather than the female. “You know, the additional maternity leave number of days as well as the benefits, that will only lessen the profits. The employers have big profits, so its going to be part of their social service,” Panelo said. The presidential spokesman urged employers to follow the law to the letter even without the need to incorporate them in their respective corporate rules and regulations or human resources code. The measure also recognizes women’s maternal function as a social responsibility. “This will provide them with ample transition time to regain health and overall wellness as well as to assume maternal roles before resuming paid work,” it read. The EML law also complements sections 17 and 22 of Republic Act 9710, also known as The Magna Carta of Women, which provides for women’s rights to health and decent work. The law will take effect after 15 days from its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. Leni, House members react Vice President Leni Robredo welcomed the passage of the EML law, which she said would benefit ordinary working mothers. “We have advocated for the extension of maternity leave. It is a problem for a lot of women where to leave their babies because they immediately have to go back to work,” Robredo said. “The extension of maternity leave will be a big help, especially for those who have no means to hire nannies or helpers,” she added. Members of the House of Representatives along with the militant women’s group Gabriela commended President Duterte for signing the EMLeave law. “We should remain steadfast in fighting discrimination against women, especially because the Constitution recognizes the role of women in nation-building and promotes equality for all,” Leyte Rep. Yedda Marie Romualdez, one of the authors of the bill, said. Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy of party-list Bagong Henerasyon, who heads the House committee on women and gender equality, said female workers, regardless of their civil status, are covered by the law. Gabriela welcomed the signing of the law that took more than 10 years since they filed the measure. “This is a significant move in ensuring women’s right to maternal health and in upholding the security of tenure of pregnant workers,” it said. House Deputy Speaker Pia Cayetano hailed the passage of the law, which gives working mothers more time to recover after giving birth and to take care of their newborn. “This measure is an acknowledgment of the dual role of women in society: as members of the work force and as mothers,” she said. Cayetano, principal author of the expanded maternity bill in the House of Representatives, also led the passage of the Senate version of the measure when she chaired the committee on women, children, family relations and gender equality in the 16th Congress. The Taguig representative thanked the President for listening to her position on the urgency of enacting the measure for women workers. Trade groups see healthier and more productive Filipino workers in the future. “The measure will greatly benefit women working in dangerous workplaces,” the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said. TUCP president Raymond Mendoza said short- and medium-term benefits for firms are expected in terms of productivity of experienced women workers. Sen. Risa Hontiveros yesterday described the signing into law of the EML Act as a massive victory for women and their families. “This is a moment mothers, families and children will not only remember, but a victory generations of Filipinos will reap the benefits of for the rest of their lives,” Hontiveros said. The senator added that the new law “squarely addresses our lack of maternity leave days, and puts us at par with international standards.” “The measure also supports the best available evidence and practice that are consistent with improving maternity leave policy,” she added. – With Janvic Mateo, Mayen Jaymalin, Cecille Suerte Felipe<doc-sep>MANILA, Philippines—President Rodrigo Duterte has signed into law the Expanded Maternity Leave Act that will provide longer maternity leave to all working mothers. Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea confirmed this to reporters, adding that the law was signed Wednesday. ADVERTISEMENT The law grants 105 days of paid maternity leave with option to extend for 30 days without pay. Solo mothers will also get additional 15 days of leave. The maternity law will give female workers in the government and private sectors 105 days of paid maternity leave credits regardless of the type of childbirth. The current law allows a 60-day paid maternity leave for normal childbirth and 78 days for cesarean delivery. Akbayan Senator Risa Hontiveros led the Senate contingent while Bagong Henerasyon Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy led the House counterpart. /jpv RELATED STORY Hontiveros says expanded maternity leave won’t lead to fewer jobs for women Read Next<doc-sep>MANILA, Philippines — After the enactment of the 105-day paid maternity leave benefit for women workers, Congress is “expected to lengthen the paternity leave for fathers as well,” Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel said Friday. Pimentel authors House Bill No. 3401 which seeks to amend the Paternity Leave Benefit Law of 1996 or Republic Act No. 8187 to bump up to 15 days the existing seven-day paid paternity leave for each of the first four childbirths of his lawful wife with whom he is cohabitating. ADVERTISEMENT In a statement, Pimentel said the government should be more “supportive of both mother and father during childbirth.” “We want to allow husbands to physically and emotionally support their wives during childbirth, and to experience early child-father bonding for a longer time,” Pimentel, a father of five, added, arguing that an additional seven days of paid leaves would give fathers more time to nurse their newborns, and help mothers recuperate from childbirth. According to the lawmaker, studies have shown that husbands who took longer paternity leaves “were more involved with their children and child care activities,” thus “reinforcing the long-term bond between father and child” and “improve the Filipino family’s overall work-life balance.” Pimentel cited that in other countries, fathers get up to 90 days of paternity leave with 80 percent of their regular pay. The 23-year-old RA 8187 grants a statutory minimum paternity leave of seven days with full pay to all married male employees in the private and public sectors, even to cases of miscarriage or the loss of pregnancy by the wife. In batting for the swift passage of his bill, Pimentel invoked the mandates of the 1987 Constitution “for the State to promote the welfare of labor, solidify the family and provide improved quality of life for all.” President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday, February 20, signed into law the measure that would grant a 105-day paid maternity leave for female workers in the government and private sectors regardless of the type of childbirth. The previous law allows a 60-day paid maternity leave for normal childbirth and 78 days for cesarean delivery. READ: Duterte signs into law longer maternity leave benefits ADVERTISEMENT Under the new law, seven days out of the 105 days maternity leave could be allocated for paternal leave, while an additional 15 days of paid leave may be availed by solo mothers. The said maternity benefits could also apply to every instance of pregnancy or without limit, and grants an option to extend the leave to an additional 30 days without pay. /muf Read Next<doc-sep>
MANILA, Philippines — The Gabriela Women’s Partylist hailed Thursday the “much-awaited” signing of the expanded maternity leave more than a decade after it first pushed for the legislation that would grant a 105-day paid maternity leave to women workers. “We in Gabriela Women’s Partylist welcome the much-awaited signing of the expanded maternity leave into law – more than a decade after we filed it,” the party-list group said in a statement, noting that various women’s groups and allies who actively campaigned for the law should also be credited. ADVERTISEMENT “Today, women won over the combined forces of corporate lobby and misogynist mongering against the measure,” it added. Akbayan party-list Rep. Tom Villarin, meanwhile, described the enactment of the law as a “decisive win for women workers and social justice.” “After 26 years of labor and birthing pains, women workers have successfully given life to a landmark legislation that upholds the rights, wealth, and health of our country’s workforce,” he said. President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday, February 20, signed into law the measure that would grant a 105-day paid maternity leave for female workers in the government and private sectors regardless of the type of childbirth. READ: Duterte signs into law longer maternity leave benefits The bicameral conference committee version of the measure states that seven days out of the 105 days maternity leave could be allocated for paternal leave, while an additional 15 days of paid leave may be availed by solo mothers. The said maternity benefits could also apply to every instance of pregnancy or without limit, and grants an option to extend the leave to an additional 30 days without pay. The current law allows a 60-day paid maternity leave for normal childbirth and 78 days for cesarean delivery. /kga Read Next