Maternity & Paternity at Work – Global ILO Report – Progress & Challenges
Author: Womens UN Report Network
Date: May 5, 2014
WUNRN
ILO – International Labour
Organization
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MATERNITY & PATERNITY AT WORK –
LAW & PRACTICE ACROSS THE WORLD
Direct Link to Full 194-Page 2014
Report
MATERNITY LEAVE DURATION BY COUNTRY
PATERNITY LEAVE AROUND THE WORLD
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MATERNITY PROTECTION
MAKES HEADWAY AMID VAST GLOBAL GAPS
Despite progress in
maternity benefits and a trend supporting paternity leave, this
ILO Report finds that
most women around the world are still not protected at work.
13 May 2014 – GENEVA (ILO News) – Most countries have
adopted maternity protection provisions since 1919, when the ILO adopted the
first Maternity Protection Convention, yet at least 830 million women workers
still don’t have adequate protection, the International Labour Organization
(ILO) said in a new report.
In its report, Maternity
and Paternity at Work: Law and practice across the world, the
ILO said 66 countries out of 185 countries and territories have
committed to at least one of three maternity protection Conventions adopted in 1919,
1952
and in 2000.
These Conventions stipulate the prevention of exposure to health and safety
hazards during pregnancy and nursing, entitlement to paid maternity leave,
maternal and child health and breastfeeding breaks, and protection against
discrimination and dismissal in relation to maternity, as well as a guaranteed
right to return to work after maternity leave.
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KEY FACTS AND FIGURES
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The
report compares national laws in 185 countries and territories with the most
recent ILO standards.
“While our findings suggest that many countries have adopted the principles of
maternity protection and support workers with family responsibilities in their
laws, lack of protection in practice remains one of the major challenges for
maternity and paternity at work today,” said the report’s co-author, Laura
Addati, Maternity Protection and Work-family Specialist from the ILO’s Gender,
Equality and Diversity Branch.
Regarding health and safety, 111 out of 160 countries have laws on dangerous or
unhealthy work affecting pregnant or nursing women and 78 set out explicit
prohibitions against such work.
Positive shift in length of leave
In
terms of maternity leave, no country has cut its length since 1994 and there
has been a gradual shift towards leave periods that meet or exceed the 14-week
ILO standard.
Only three of 185 countries and territories provide no statutory cash benefits
during maternity leave and more than 100 countries now finance benefits through
social security, reducing employers’ contribution.
When it comes to discrimination protection, all but 20 of 165 countries had
explicit prohibitions against discrimination during pregnancy and leave.
Exclusions
from protection
Despite
overall strides, maternity discrimination persists in all countries, the report
said. Around the world, most women, numbering around 830 million workers, still
do not have adequate maternity protection in terms of leave and income security
around childbirth.
Almost 80 per cent of these women work in Africa and Asia where some groups of
workers are excluded from protection in law and in practice. This is often the
case for self-employed, migrant, domestic, agricultural, casual or temporary
workers, and indigenous and tribal peoples.
These are also the regions where employer liability schemes are more prevalent,
informal work is predominant and maternal and child mortality ratios are still
very high.
“In order to have gender equality, you must have maternity protection. And if
you don’t have equality at home, it will be an uphill battle to have it at
work. That’s where paternity benefits, childcare and other work-family policies
come in,” said Shauna Olney, Chief of the ILO Gender, Equality and Diversity
Branch.
Upswing
in paternity support
In
addition to maternity protection legislation, many countries also have measures
to support working fathers.
Of 167 countries studied, 78 stipulate a statutory right to paternity leave,
which is often paid, underlining the trend of fathers’ greater involvement
around childbirth.
Leave provisions for fathers are most common in developed economies, Africa,
Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Paternity leave is paid in 70 out of 78
countries where there is entitlement.
Next
steps
The report urges governments to adopt and implement
inclusive laws and policies for effective protection, noting that assessing
gaps in current frameworks is a first step.
However, the report recommends that employers should not have to bear the full
cost of benefits: “Pooling resources through social insurance or public funds
and social care services takes the weight off employers and it also promotes
non-discrimination at work,” said Olney.
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