The Third Standing Committee of the Legislative Assembly (AL) has agreed to the amendments to the Labor Relations Law. In order for the amendments to take effect, the draft must now return to the AL plenary where lawmakers are expected to approve it.
The amendment procedure began in 2018, when the first draft of the amendment was delivered to the legislature. During the process, the committee, as well as other stakeholders made comments on the draft.
Subsequently, the government has made changes to the draft and presented it to the committee again.
At a press conference held after a committee’s meeting, the president of the committee, lawmaker and lawyer Vong Hin Fai, announced the consensus reached on the latest draft.
In the latest draft, the government has proposed four major amendments to the law.
First, a change to the length of maternity leave is proposed. Currently, maternity leave in Macau lasts for 56. The proposed length is 70 days of maternity leave.
Second, paternity leave is proposed as a legal entitlement for the first time in Macau. The proposed paternity leave is five days.
In principle, the leave should be enjoyed when the baby is born. However, the latest draft proposes that the father-to-be can enjoy part of the leave from three months into the pregnancy until 30 days after the baby is born.
In order to take the leave prior to the birth of the baby, the father must present to his employer certification issued by a registered doctor or a hospital. Furthermore, the proposal requires the father to save at least one day of the leave to be taken after the baby’s birth.
Although the draft is proposed to take immediate effect after the announcement, there will be a brief window period between its approval at the AL and publication in the Official Gazette. During this period, the old Labor Relations Law will prevail, but the committee reasserted that the Civil Code ensures the more advantageous stipulations should apply.
Third, it has long been proposed that regular day-offs should be compensated when they overlap with a public holiday. This latest draft includes the proposal. The compensated date should be determined by negotiation but, if an agreement cannot be made, it will be determined by the employer. The proposal requires three days prior notice to the employees.
Finally, with regards to dismissal without cause, the salary ceiling for calculation of compensation will be raised by MOP1,000, to MOP21,000 per month.
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