News | Wednesday, 20 May 2009

MEA clarifies misconceptions on Maternity Leave

The Malta Employers’ Association stated that a number of recent public statements provide a misleading picture of the state of affairs in Malta about maternity leave entitlement when compared to that in other countries. Malta is in conformity with the requirement established by Directive EEC 92/85, which states that a minimum of 14 weeks maternity leave have to be granted. Although many countries do provide for a lengthier period of maternity leave than the minimum stipulated by the Directive, however, unlike Malta, employers do not always have to pay the full wages for the duration. For example, in the UK, the employer pays 90 per cent of former income for the first six weeks, plus a lump sum of €150 for the remaining period of maternity leave. This makes the cost of maternity leave less expensive to the employer than it is in Malta although the duration is longer.
The Association called for an objective discussion on such topics and emphasised that family friendly measures have to be sustainable and compatible with competitive parameters. Picking selective statistics to portray a negative image of working conditions in Malta only serves to distort the true state of affairs and can lead to mistaken policy decisions that will, ultimately work against the very interests of the segments they are intended to protect.

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