The Expanded Maternity Leave (EML) bill has been passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Its last step before going into effect is getting President Duterte’s signature.
This new EML bill gives mothers an extended maternity leave of 105 days. This is 45 more days than the previous 60 days (or 2 months). An additional 15 days of maternity leave are given to single mothers, which would total 120 days (0r 3 months) of leave. It also allows mothers to transfer 7 more days of maternity leave to fathers, doubling paternity leave from 7 days to 14.
It provides a 30 day paid leave for adoptive parents, whether male or female. Another additional provision is giving women the right to take on an extra 30-day leave (after the 105-day leave), albeit it is unpaid. Lastly, the EML bill reinforces the law that termination or firing on the basis of maternity is unethical and blatantly illegal.
If 30 days pass without the President acting on the bill, it will automatically lapse into law. This means that we would be getting a new period of maternity leave by February 14, at the latest!
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According to Senator Risa Hontiveros, the last time this law was revised to factor in additional paid maternity leave days was in 1992. That’s about 26 years ago. Which is why she hails this bill as “a historic victory for women.”
Let us know your thoughts on the bill in the comments!
Sources: EML Bill
