Maternity Leave
Maternity leave provisions in the current Labour Act provide for a qualifying service before one can be entitled to maternity leave. The constitutionality of these provisions has been attacked in various forums. The legislature wishes to do away with the controversy and has decided to remove the qualifying service. This means every female employee will be able to enjoy maternity leave irrespective of the period of service to an employer.
Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value
The bill proposes the amendment of the non-discrimination provision (Section 5) to prevent employers from paying differentiated wages based on sex or gender for work of equal value.
Employment of young persons
The bill has increased the penalty for employing young persons in violation of the Labour Act. Imprisonment for such a violation is proposed to be 10 years up from the current 2 years whereas the fine is proposed to be level 12 from level 7. This shows the intolerance of the legislature regarding the employment of young persons.