Nancy ready to look into proposal for shared maternity leave

 The proposal would allow couples to pool maternity leave, letting both parents spend more time together caring for the newborn.

Women, family and community development minister Nancy Shukri said she would look into the proposal for shared maternity leave to give husbands and wives more flexibility. (Bernama pic)

KUALA LUMPUR:

Women, family and community development minister Nancy Shukri is ready to look into a proposal for maternity leave to be shared between husband and wife to give couples more flexibility in caring for the mother and baby after birth.

She described the proposal as a good one as it would allow couples to spend more time together as a family.

“I strongly support talk about family togetherness,” she said when winding up the 2027 budget debate for her ministry in the Dewan Rakyat.

The proposal was put forward by Rodziah Ismail (PH-Ampang), who asked the government to review maternity leave facilities so that the period could be shared between husband and wife.

Rodziah said such a move would help couples manage their newborn’s needs, especially if the baby suffers from jaundice and requires additional care.

She said in certain circumstances, wives may need to share their leave period with their husbands so both can take turns caring for the baby.

Rodziah proposed that the leave-sharing mechanism be considered to give parents more flexibility in managing childcare.

At present, women workers in Peninsular Malaysia and Labuan are entitled to a minimum 98 days of maternity leave, compared to 60 days before the amendment to the Employment Act 1955 came into effect on Jan 1, 2023.

Eligible male workers are entitled to seven consecutive days of paid paternity leave under the same Act. - FMT