• Home
• /
• Legal

Maternity leave

I work in a private company here. I am currently pregnant and want to travel to Canada for my delivery as I hold an immigrant Canadian card. I asked my employer of the possibility of allowing me to take unpaid leave before my maternity to travel. As you know, airlines will allow me to travel only till my 8th month. The management is still deciding on that subject. What are my rights? Please, advise.

Maternity leave refers to taking time off after the birth. Article 30 of the UAE Labour Law provides 45 days maternity leave with full pay which includes the time before and after delivery provided her employment duration should not be less than a year. However, if the employment duration is less than a year, she is entitled to the same maternity leave with half pay.

Article 30 also states that: “A working woman, on the expiry of the maternity leave, may discontinue work without pay for a maximum period of 100 consecutive or intermittent days if such absence is due to illness which does not enable her to resume work. Such illness shall be evidenced by a medical certificate issued by a medical authority attested by the competent health authority or endorsed by such authorities to the effect that the illness resulted from pregnancy or delivery. Leave provided for in the preceding two paragraphs shall not be computed as part of other leaves.”

Keeping in view the above mentioned Law, you have a right to 45 days of maternity leave. However, accepting leave for a longer time than provided in Article 30 is at the sole discretion of your company management.