The ManicaPost
Wendy Nyakurerwa- Matinde-Editor’s Musings
EVERY mother will tell you that carrying a pregnancy and giving birth is an experience to treasure.
Even the accompanying pains and discomforts do not take away the bliss of bringing life into this world.
But for working mothers, a certain hurdle has to be navigated.
A new mother does not have the luxury of deciding the amount of time to take off work as this decision is made for her.
It is one influenced by circumstances beyond her control, and yet the decision has an impact on the new mom’s health and that of her baby.
Through the International Labour Organisation (ILO) guidelines, international labour standards provide maternity protection for female workers, especially with regards to the mother’s right to a period of rest before and after childbirth.
The ILO Maternity Protection Convention No. 183 represents the minimum standards and states that maternity leave should not be less than 14 weeks.
In Zimbabwe, a female employee who has been employed for at least one year in an organisation may be granted 14 weeks or 98 days’ maternity leave on full pay in terms of Section 18 of the Labour Act. Anything in excess of these three months may be granted as unpaid leave.
While this is the minimum standard, herein lies the problem as almost all working mothers are forced to return to work after the 98 days leave regardless of their well-being or that of the child.
Hungry babies, unproductive mothers
Returning to work early after maternity leave has been identified as a significant cause for never starting breastfeeding, early cessation of breastfeeding and lack of exclusive breastfeeding. This, of course, impacts on the child’s health as no supplement beats the nutritional value of breast milk.
Yet the right to continue breastfeeding a child after returning to work is important since duration of leave entitlements is generally shorter than the World Health Organisation’s recommended duration of exclusive breastfeeding of six months.
Convention No. 183 therefore states that women shall have the right to one or more daily breaks or a daily reduction of hours of work for breastfeeding. Where possible, provision should be made for the establishment of nursing facilities under adequate hygienic conditions at the workplace.
On this one, Zimbabwe has made great strides as breastfeeding mothers in formal institutions are rewarded breastfeeding hours. The Parliament of Zimbabwe is also leading from the front as breastfeeding facilities have been set up for nursing mothers to breastfeed their babies in-between working hours.
The brunt of an informal sector
In most developing countries, paid maternity leave is limited to formal sector employment. This is a huge problem for Zimbabwe, especially considering that the country’s economic activities are largely informal.
This means that millions of Zimbabwean women lack economic security around childbirth and this has adverse effects on their health and nutrition and that of their children.
Income security during maternity leave
Expectant and nursing mothers therefore require special protection to prevent any potential adverse effects for them and their infants. They need adequate time to give birth, to recover from the delivery process, and to nurse their children.
Consequently women require income security and protection to ensure that they will not suffer from income loss or lose their jobs because of pregnancy or maternity leave. Such protection ensures a woman’s equal access and right to employment.
On the other hand, the right to maternity leave cash benefits during maternity leave ensures that the woman can maintain herself and her child. For those women whose income is lost due to the interruption of their economic activities, these benefits should be provided through social insurance or public funds. However, these are not available in Zimbabwe.
Job security during maternity leave
It should also be guaranteed that pregnant women and new mothers will not lose their jobs as a result of being pregnant, on maternity leave or because they have just had a child. Such a guarantee is essential in ensuring that maternity does not become a source of discrimination against women in the workplace.
In fact, Convention No. 183 provides for employment security by prohibiting dismissal during pregnancy, maternity leave and a period of time after returning to work. In the event of a dismissal, the employer has to prove that the reasons for dismissal are unrelated to pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding.
But sadly, while taking time off work has been proven to be crucial for baby bonding, experts have noted that women who take more than three months’ maternity leave often see their careers suffering. Professional women of child bearing age therefore find themselves between a rock and a hard place as they struggle to build their families and careers at the same time.
A glimpse at international benchmarks
What then would be the right length of a maternity leave to allow baby’s seamless growth, mom’s well-being and the development of a perfect bond between them?
A look at what other countries are doing could help Zimbabwe.
According to a UNICEF report, in Hungary, mothers are offered 72 weeks of paid leave.
In Finland, under the new law which came into effect early this year, each parent is allowed to take a leave of 164 days, which is about seven months. A single parent can take the amount of two parents, which is 328 days.
New parents in Sweden are entitled to 480 days of leave at 80 percent of their normal pay. That is on top of the 18 weeks reserved for mothers. In Iceland, parents can each get six months of post-childbirth leave.
Norway’s system is really generous. Mothers can take 49 weeks at full pay or 59 weeks at 80 percent pay. Parents can receive an additional 46 weeks at full pay or 56 weeks at 80 percent of their income.
Flexi-hours and motherhood
A report by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency released last month found that flexible workplaces with paid parental leave schemes are able to retain female staff members during and after pregnancy.
At a time when the Covid-19 pandemic has taught the world that working does not mean sitting in an office, but rather being productive both inside and outside the office; perhaps the time is now for Zimbabwe to consider being more flexible when it comes to granting both maternal and paternal leave.
At 36.882 deaths per 1000 live births in 2020, the country’s child mortality rate is rather high and this could be attributed to the fact that working parents, particularly mothers, do not have adequate time to spend looking after their new-born babies. New moms need more time to nurture their fragile bundles of joy, and six months is a good starting point.
When it comes to tackling the elephant in the room, new mothers face potential discrimination in the labour market as very few companies would hire a pregnant woman; while some have lost their jobs during maternity breaks.
We have to deal with this as soon as yesterday if women empowerment is to become a reality.
Until next week, let’s chew the cud.
Feedback: [email protected], Twitter @wnyakurerwa
