Lok Sabha passes Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Bill, 2016

It provides maternity benefit of 12 weeks to Commissioning mother and adopting mother.

The Bill facilitates “work from home” to a mother with mutual consent of the employee and the employer.

It makes mandatory in respect of establishment having fifty or more employees , to have the facility of crèche either individually or as a shared common facility within such distance as may be prescribed by rules & also to allow four visits to the crèche by the woman daily, including the interval for rest allowed to her.

Every establishment will have to intimate in writing and electronically to every woman at the time of her initial appointment about the benefits available under the Act.

The bill was presented in the Lok Sabha by the Minister of State (IC) for Labour and Employment, Shri Bandaru Dattatreya.

The Maternity Benefit(Amendment) Bill, 2016 has already been passed by the Rajya Sabha on  Aug 11,2016.

These changes will have major impact on the health, well-being and growth of the future generation in the Country. It will have positive impact on women’s participation in labour force and will improve the work- life balance of the women workers.

The Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Act, 2016 will come into the force only after the President’s assent.