Lo Choi In: Macau’s maternity leave provisions ‘outdated’

Lawmaker Lo Choi In raised concerns at the Legislative Assembly plenary session yesterday about the adequacy of Macau’s current labor laws.

According to Lo, labor laws have remained largely unchanged, following the introduction of the law in 2008 and a few amendments made in 2020.

She specifically highlighted the need for updates in the city’s maternity and paternity leave provisions, adding that Macau has not kept pace with the modern times.

She argued that the existing laws do not provide local families with a reasonable amount of maternity leave that meets international standards.

Currently, Hong Kong and mainland China provide a minimum of 98 days of maternity leave, whereas Macau only offers 70 days.

In 2020, Macau increased its maternity leave from 56 to 70 days in response to the social impact of the pandemic.

However, Lo believes that the government should further extend it to 90 days, aligning with international conventions. She argues that such revisions could help tackle Macau’s aging population problem and promote a higher birth rate, which would have a substantial impact on the economy and the future development of Macau.

The local government has previously stated that the lack of detailed study on this matter is a concern. They argue that implementing changes to labor laws cannot happen overnight and should be approached through incremental adjustments.

Additionally, there are concerns about the ability of companies, namely the ones of small and medium size, to support employees taking the full 90 days of maternity leave if such revisions are implemented.

Staff reporter