Advertisement

Law on maternity leave benefits awaits ministerial orders

Tuesday August 30 2016
pregnant

Rwandan women on maternity leave will have to wait longer to enjoy the benefits of the new law that guarantees them payment of their full salary for three months. FILE PHOTO | FILE

Women on maternity leave will have to wait longer to enjoy the benefits of the new law that guarantees them payment of their full salary for three months.

This law establishing and governing the maternity leave benefits scheme was officially published in April, but despite the provision of the new law that comes into force on the date of its publication in the Official Gazette, employers both public and private are still applying the provisions of the old laws.

These only oblige them to pay for first six weeks of their employees’ maternity leave, and ask them to come to work in the second half of their leave or surrender 80 per cent of their monthly salary.

“I was called by the Human Resource department to come back to work or otherwise be paid only 20 per cent of my salary as provided in the older law” a government employee who did not want to be named said.

The Rwanda Social Security Board designated to run the scheme, blames the delay on the fact that concerned ministries are yet to issues ministerial orders accompanying the law.

“For now, women are not receiving maternity benefits as the ministerial orders implementing the law have not yet bee adopted” said Moses Kazoora, director of communications for Rwanda Social Security Board.

Advertisement

Five ministerial orders, including one determining modalities of declaration and payment of the contribution and the one determining the procedure for payment of maternity leave benefits are provided by this law. The exact time it will take for the orders to be issued is unknown.

“The ministerial orders have already been checked by the Law Reform Commission, they are pending adoption by the Cabinet,” Mr Kazoora indicated.

Delay in implementation of orders has in the past rendered idle some provisions of different laws in the country, for as long as two years or more.

“Many of these orders should be available as soon as the law itself is published in the official gazette” said Me Pie Habimana, an advocate in Kigali.

When the Bill was adopted by Cabinet in 2015, the initial plan was to have the scheme fully functional by July 2015, in line with the last financial year.

Analysts fear that delay in starting the scheme with the current financial year that started in July might push it to next year.

“RSSB is ready to administer the scheme. All the necessary requirements are in place…including procedures manual and software application” Mr Kazoora said.

Though concerned organs believe it will be functional upon publication of the ministerial orders, analysts believe institution of the fund and collection of contributions might be lengthy.

The law states that for women to start benefiting from the scheme, they must have contributed for at least one month preceding the month in which they start their maternity leave.

It obliges all employers and employees to contribute zero point three per cent (0.3 per cent) of the worker’s salary every month.

Initial discussions around implementation of this law suggested that employers will be paying their workers usual monthly salary during the leave period and then claim reimbursement from the government under the maternity leave scheme.

Following publication of this law in April, some employers started implementing a fully paid three month leave.

“There are those employers who are good enough who are already fulfilling the law though the ministerial orders complementing the law are not yet out.” said Markie Rucogoza, a lawyer with Haguruka, an association of the Defense of Women and Children’s Rights

The arrangements however, were premature according to RSSB and such employers will carry the cost alone.

“Employers who are granting full salary for the 12 weeks cannot claim compensation from RSSB as the law will not be retroactive.” Kazoora said.

Women rights group have called for a quick adoption of the pending ministerial orders, for the law to serve its primary purpose of ensuring the wellbeing of mothers and newborn.

“We pray they are approved soon,” Mr Rucogoza said.

Before the 2009 labour law and the amended 2013 law establishing the general statutes for public service, women on maternity leave were entitled to 12 fully paid consecutive weeks for maternity leave.

This was changed in the spirit of facilitating employers who according to proponents of the change had complained of the financial burden related to paying women on maternity leave while also paying for services of their substitutes.