Dhaka approves in principle draft labour law raising maternity leave

The approval followed a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

“Now a female worker can avail 16 weeks as maternity leave—eight weeks before the birth of a baby and eight weeks after the birth. But the leave has been made 120 days in the draft law,” cabinet secretary Mohammad Mahbub Hossain told reporters.

The condition for forming a trade union was also eased in the proposed law. To form a trade union, the signatures of 15 per cent of workers are required in a company having over 3,000 workers and the signatures of 20 per cent of workers are needed in a company having less than 3,000 employees. The existing law requires 20 per cent of signatures in both cases.

ALCHEMPro News Desk (DS)