Parental Leave Extension Will Help More Working Women

Extensions to paid parental leave passed by Parliament will further assist working women to achieve quality working lives, the Council of Trade Unions said tonight.

An amendment bill to extend paid parental leave coverage to self-employed workers passed into law a short time ago with cross party support.

"New Zealand has only recently become compliant with an International Labour Organisation maternity leave convention, for a minimum of 14 weeks paid parental leave, which came into effect for New Zealand workers on December 1 last year," said Carol Beaumont, CTU Secretary.

"There is still a long way to go in improving New Zealand's parental leave provisions," said Carol Beaumont. "The vast majority of workers still face a drop in income when they take parental leave, and the CTU will continue to push for an increase in the payment rates."

"The CTU supports a legislative right to breastfeeding breaks and facilities for new mothers upon returning to work, and this is another improvement we will be pushing for," said Carol Beaumont.