Parliament to remedy defects regarding maternity and paternity leave

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Parliament has two years to remedy defects in some provisions of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA) which deal with maternity and paternity leave.

This comes after the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg ruled on Wednesday that parts of the Act unfairly discriminate between mothers and fathers.

The applicants, Ika and Werner Van Wyk, Sonke Gender Justice and other organizations turned to the court to challenge the minimum leave granted to new parents; a mother is afforded four months while a father is given 10 days.

The applicants argued that this was unconstitutional and unfairly discriminated between parents.

The court, in summary found that the declaratory orders sought by the applicants were well founded adding that sections of the Act offend section nine and 10 of the constitution.

While parliament is tasked with remedying the defects, in the meantime, the 27-page judgment penned by Deputy Judge President, Roland Sutherland has ruled that the appropriate immediate action to remove inequality in the interim is that all parents will enjoy four-months of consecutive parental leave collectively.

This means that parents of a child will share the four months as they choose.

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