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1. Maternity Benefit Act of 1961: Rights of
Working Mothers
Introduction
In today's competitive world, both genders must strive to maintain a decent standard of living,
especially women who often have to balance professional and motherhood responsibilities.
Earlier, pregnancy, childbirth, and upbringing of children were the primary reason for the limited
contribution of women in the workforce. In order to fuel the participation of women in the
workforce, the Maternity Benefit Act, of 1961, was implemented. The Constitution of India
empowers the government to fulfil the requirements or aspirations of society; Article 42 of the
Indian Constitution states that “The State shall make provision for securing just and humane
conditions of work and for maternity relief.” This means that there is a requirement of introducing
as well as promoting certain provisions which help in improving and securing the work
conditions, particularly for pregnant women. The following sections of the article provide brief

2. information regarding the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.
Maternity Benefit Act, 1961
The Maternity Benefit (MB) Act of 1961 was introduced to provide benefits to women employees
during the time of their maternity and ensures that they receive a salary during their absence
from work in order to take care of a newborn child. The main motive of this Act is to reduce or
remove the obstacles faced by female employees while entailing the journey of motherhood. It
also allows working women to enable work-life balance as well as their choice of having a child.
This Act was passed by the Union of India on 12 December 1961 which includes conditional
benefits to female employees related to childbirth, complications, and pregnancy. Under this Act,
various facilities are provided to female employees in order to overcome the state of motherhood
peacefully and honorably without any fear of facing issues in the job due to absence in the pre or
postnatal period. According to the MB Act, an employer cannot terminate, fire, or dismiss a
pregnant woman on the grounds of her pregnancy. Also, it is against the law to change the terms
of her employment as well as to deduct her salary based on light work and breaks for

3. breastfeeding. There are different sections that cover all maternity benefits available in the Act
which are further divided into certain categories as discussed below:
● Employment and payment-related benefits: Section 4 (Prohibition of women’s
employment or work in certain cases), Section 5 (Right to payment), Section 7 (Payment
in case of death of women), and Section 8 (Medical bonus payment).
● Leave-related benefits: Section 9 (Leave for miscarriage, medical termination of
pregnancy, or others) and Section 10 (Illness leave due to pregnancy, tubectomy
operation, premature birth of child, miscarriage or medical termination of pregnancy).
● Breaks and dismissal-related benefits: Section 11 (Nursing breaks), Section 12
(Dismissal during the absence of pregnancy), Section 13 (Deduction of wages is
prohibited in certain cases), and Section 18 (Forfeiture of provided benefits under MB
Act).
Provisions and Benefits of the Maternity Benefit Act
● Maternity leave duration: According to the Maternity Benefit Act, every woman is entitled
to maternity benefits of twelve weeks which cannot be availed before six weeks from the
date of expected delivery. After Amendment 2017, this time period was changed to 8
weeks whereas maternity leave was increased to 26 weeks.
● Adoptive and Commissioning mothers: Maternity leave of twelve weeks is granted to
both adoptive and commissioning mothers, calculated from the date the child is handed
over to them. Commissioning mothers are defined as biological mothers who impart their
eggs to create an embryo that is further implanted in another woman. Adoptive mothers
are those who legally adopt a child below three years of age.
● Tubectomy cases: After the tubectomy operation, women can opt for two weeks' leave
under the MB Act of 1961. Before opting for this benefit, proper documentation is
required to be submitted to the employer.
● Leave for Miscarriage: In case of miscarriage or medical termination of the pregnancy,
women can opt for six weeks' leave after the production of medical documents.
● Post-pregnancy illness: There may be a case where women might suffer from critical
illness post-pregnancy; therefore, MB Act allows them to take one month's leave for
recovery.
● Healthcare Incentive: Under the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961, monetary help is also
provided by the Central Government to expecting mothers in which they are given INR
3500. Alongside, under the National Food Security Act of 2013, a minimum of INR 6000
bonus is allowed for pregnant and breastfeeding mothers.
● Appointment and power of Inspectors: In order to enforce the MB act, Inspectors (mostly
Public Servants) are appointed by the government. An inspector has the ability to perform
an inquiry on his own regarding mistreatment towards pregnant women or by complaint
given by the employer. If the complaint turns out to be correct, the employer is directed to
pay the employee whereas if an employee is not satisfied with the inspector’s decision
then he/she can apply for an appeal to the prescribed authority.
You can also go through “Contribution of Tribunals in Delivering Justice"
2017 Amendment

4. This Amendment was introduced by the Minister for Labour and Employment (Mr. Bandaru
Dattatreya) in the Rajya Sabha and was coupled with the Ministry of Women and Child
Development aiming for maternity benefits for women. After the 259th Law Commission Report,
the 2017 Amendment was introduced which stated that maternity benefits should be increased
to 180 days and should be made available in the State. Every woman including those who work in
the unorganized sector should be provided with all maternity benefits. Moreover, proper
guidelines should be introduced highlighting paid maternity leaves provided by employers in the
private sector.
Also Read: Supreme Court Latest Updates
New provisions after the 2017 Amendment
● Crèche facility: According to the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act of 2017, every
establishment to which the Act applies having 50 or more employees must provide
crèche facilities to the female employees within a stipulated distance. The employer
should allow the female employees to visit the crèche facility four times a day along with
the interval of time given to her for rest.
● Work from Home Option: Under this Amendment, female employees are permitted to
work from home based on the nature and necessity of their work. This option is available
even after delivery during the post-delivery period and may be availed by the women
employee on mutual agreement with the employer.
● Employee awareness: Another provision granted after the Amendment of 2017 was to
educate women employees at the time of their appointment regarding maternity benefits.
Employment termination if it coincides with the first day of maternity leave will be
addressed as termination on the basis of pregnancy which is unjustifiable and illegal.
Maternity leave eligibility
Under the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961, the eligibility criterion to avail maternity
benefits includes a woman who should have worked in an establishment as an employee for a
time period of at least eighty days in the past twelve months. Also, there must be at least 10
workers in an organization or establishment.
Applicability of Maternity Leave Act
● The Act is applicable to establishments such as mines, plantations, and factories under
Section 2 and Section 3(e) of the Act.
● Applicable to all government establishments or organizations.
● Organizations where people are employed for the exhibition of acrobatic, equestrian, and
other performances.
● Applicable to all shops defined under the law including 10 or more employees.
Also Read: Legal Articles
Filing a complaint under MB Act, 1961

5. A complaint can be filed by a woman with the help of an Inspector designated by the MB Act of
1961. If a pregnant woman is denied maternity or medical benefits or expelled while on maternity
leave, she has sixty days to appeal against the decision. In case, she does not agree with the
inspector’s decision; therefore, within thirty days she can make a counteroffer to the suggested
expert or she can also file a lawsuit within a year for availing of maternity benefits.
Related Case laws
● Hussan Mithu Mhasvadkar vs. Bombay Iron and Steel Labour Board
● Municipal Corporation of Delhi vs Female workers
● Mangalore Ganesh Beedi Works vs. Union of India
● SPIC Pharmaceuticals Division vs. Authority Under Sec. 48(1) of A.P.
● The Director, Steel Authority of India Limited vs. Ispat Khadan Janta Mazdoor Union
Conclusion
The Maternity Benefit Act provides various benefits to working women during their pregnancy
period (either pre- or post-pregnancy) and certain provisions were introduced for the same. Apart
from various schemes under the Maternity Benefits Act as mentioned above, National Maternity
Benefit Scheme now known as Jnani Suraksha Yojana also help pregnant women in availing the
maternity benefits. Also, Vande Mataram Scheme, Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, and
Pradhan Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan are some of the programs that guarantee financial
assistance to women during their crucial pregnancy time. The Government or employer of an
organization should take certain measures to make their women employees aware of these
schemes or programs.
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