BL Premium reports that parliament has been tasked with reviewing the law to cushion the impact of a potentially “enormous” financial burden on the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) triggered by a landmark Constitutional Court (ConCourt) order that allows parents to share statutory maternity leave equally.
Currently only biological mothers are entitled to four months of paid maternity leave. But on Friday, the apex court confirmed a 2023 High Court ruling which declared labour laws that entitled employed birth mothers to four months of maternity leave but fathers or partners to only 10 days’ parental leave invalid and inconsistent with the constitution. The ConCourt judgment provided an interim reading-in of changes to the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA) that will be operative for the 36 months afforded to MPs to remedy the constitutional defects. However, the court did not issue an interim order correcting the corresponding UIF Act provisions, citing a possible “enormous financial burden” on the UIF. In terms of the current law, only biological mothers in employment are entitled to receive UIF benefits, up to a maximum of four months.
According to labour lawyer and MP Michael Bagraim, the fund should not have any problems with money because it’s “generously funded”. He added, however, that parliament would have to do a lot of work to decide the detail of how the BCEA should be changed to comply with the court order in a sustainable manner. Cosatu’s Matthew Parks said there should be urgent engagements at Nedlac with the Department of Employment & Labour to effect the necessary legislative amendments.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sinesipho Schrieber at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
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