NTUC recommends 6 months of paid maternity leave

SINGAPORE: Another priority for the NTUC is promoting better work—life balance for mothers.

In response to calls by the National Population and Talent Division for ideas to boost Singapore’s falling fertility rate, the labour movement is recommending that working mums be given six months of paid maternity leave, with another optional six months of unpaid leave.

"It’s important for us to encourage employers to embrace better work—life (balance). Particularly after delivery, there are certain stresses for women," said NTUC President Diana Chia.

"Many women, because of this difficulty, leave their job to take care of their family. And to get them back to work is also an enormous task. So we’re actually looking at how we can phase in this," she added.

"It’s good, this will encourage more women to have babies, but it depends on the company. (For) small companies, I don’t think they can afford to give six months of maternity leave followed by no pay leave," said one member of the public.

"The main thing is (whether) the employer accepts these rules. Some employers won’t allow their employees to take a long break of one year because they have to look for part—time manpower," said another.

— CNA/cc