Fear-mongering over Expanded Maternity Leave law criticized

Opposition congressman Akbayan Party-List Rep. Tom Villarin on Tuesday criticized business groups for what he described as their “fear-mongering” in connection with the recently-signed Expanded Maternity Leave law.

“The Expanded Maternity Leave Law protects women and their right to a decent workplace in times of pregnancy. Anyone who deprives women of this right is guilty of discrimination,” Villarin said in a statement.

The lawmaker was referring to Republic Act (RA) 11210, which was signed by the President Duterte last week amid much fanfare.

Thanks to the new law, female workers can now avail themselves of maximum 105 days of paid maternity leave. They were previously allowed a maximum of only 60 days maternity leave.

However, some business groups have argued against the passage of this piece of legislation, saying it would seriously impact the productivity of the workforce. This supposed negative effect of the law would reportedly cause companies to prefer hiring men over women.

“Instead of sounding like broken records and spreading fears that have been allayed in the committee hearings, employers should instead help small and medium enterprises and educate fellow employers on improving human resource management,” Villarin said.

Under the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Health Organization’s standards, a minimum of 98 days is recommended for maternity leave.

It should be noted that the Philippines had the fewest days for maternity leave in the ASEAN region before the enactment of RA 11210.