Maternity leave rights questioned amid contract constraints
Understanding legal entitlements crucial for navigating maternity leave and benefits
Question:
I have been working in a private company for two years on a commission basis, without salary. The employment contract states that I am not entitled to maternity leave allowance or annual leave allowance. Currently, I am about to give birth.
Do I have the legal right to claim maternity leave allowance, even though the employment contract does not allow this? If I am entitled to maternity leave allowance, how is the vacation allowance calculated and also how is the annual leave allowance calculated? Please advise.
Answer:
To answer such question, I would advise the questioner that:
As per Article 30 of the Labour Law, you are entitled to a maternity leave of (60) sixty days according to the following:
a. The first (45) forty-five days with full wage; and
b. The following (15) fifteen days with half wage.
The conditions in the employment contract that deprives you from maternity or annual leave are considered null and void because they contradict the law and not beneficial to the employee according to Article 65 of the law (“Each provision contradicting the provisions hereof, even if it was existing prior to its enforcement, shall be deemed null and void, unless it is more beneficial to the worker. Each discharge, reconciliation or waiver of the rights arising for the worker hereunder shall be null and void if it violates its provisions.”)
Being on a maternity leave or absent from work as mentioned in Article 30 shall not prejudice the female worker’s right to obtain the other leaves like the annual leave.
The wage of both leaves will be calculated on the same method of Calculating the Wages of Workers on Piecework Basis stated in Article 23 of the Law (“The daily wage of workers who receive their wages on piecework basis shall be calculated according to the average amount the worker received for the actual working days during the (6) six months preceding the request or claim regarding any issue related to the wage.”)
