Hong Kong maternity leave to extend by four weeks from December 11, but unions say more must be done for working mothers

The jump from 10 to 14 weeks, which the city will effectively cover for women making HK$100,000 or less, was first promised in a 2018 Carrie Lam policy address

Union leaders say it’s good that Hong Kong ‘finally catching up’ with International Labour Organisation recommendations on the subject

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Hong Kong mothers will begin getting four more paid weeks with their newborns from December 11 it was announced on Friday. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 7:44pm, 9 Oct 2020Updated: 11:35pm, 9 Oct 2020

Four more weeks of maternity leave for Hong Kong mothers will become a reality on December 11, it was revealed on Friday, but unionists who pushed for the reform say the city can and should go further in supporting working women.

The Employment Ordinance amendment, officially announced in the government gazette, originated two years ago in a policy address by Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, who pledged to extend statutory maternity leave from 10 to 14 weeks.

A bill was subsequently tabled at the Legislative Council in January, and passed by lawmakers before the summer break in July.

The extension of Hong Kong’s mandatory maternity leave policy was first mooted in a speech by city leader Carrie Lam in 2018. Photo: Shutterstock

Under the ordinance, maternity leave pay is to be calculated at four-fifths the daily average of the wages earned by the employee in question.

While lobbying for business sector support, the government promised to reimburse employers for the cost of the additional leave, which was capped at HK$36,822 (US$4,720), then raised to HK$80,000 in June in response to union demands.