Wong Kit Cheng advocates for permanent maternity subsidies

Wong Kit Cheng

Lawmaker Wong Kit Cheng has praised the government’s recent decision to extend the maternity leave compensation subsidy scheme, expressing hopes to see it converted into a permanent subsidy.

“The continuation of relevant subsidy measures with retroactive effect reflects support and emphasis on family development and dual-career women, while also considering Macau’s true economic environment,” said Wong.

The vice-chairman of the Women’s Federation expressed hope that the authorities will take the lead in coordinating consensus within the Social Council, expedite the introduction of relevant plans, and propose to make temporary measures permanent.

Since the SAR government amended the Labor Relations Act in 2020, increasing maternity leave from 56 days to 70 days and providing maternity leave compensation subsidies to eligible local female employees, these measures have played a positive role in encouraging enterprises to actively implement family-friendly measures.

The lawmaker observed that the birth rate in Macau has dropped significantly in recent years, and fertility-related surveys conducted by the Women’s Federation have found that residents are eager for more family-friendly measures to foster a more conducive environment for childbirth.

While the new subsidy plans are temporary, Wong emphasized that the subsidies approved during the transition period in the past three years totaled only around MOP14.3 million, with an average annual cost of less than MOP5 million, which accounted for a very small portion of the government’s annual expenditure.

She hopes that the feasibility of converting it to a permanent subsidy can be examined and used as a reference to promote other family-friendly measures, such as accelerating research on amending the Labor Relations Law to extend maternity leave and increasing social security birth allowances. Such measures are hoped to provide more support for the sustainable development of families in Macau. Howard Tong