New parental leave laws: what to know

EMPLOYERS must extend parental leave benefits to all parents, regardless of ender or birthing status.

- STAFF REPORTER

This includes fathers and non-birthing parents, who are now entitled to share in the four months and ten days of leave, law firm Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr (CDH) says.

“Employers should review and update their leave policies to ensure compliance and avoid discrimination.

“Where paid maternity leave has previously been offered only to birthing mothers, these benefits should be extended equally to all parents,’ CDH said, weighing in on the Constitutional Court's landmark judgment handed down on Friday. The decision effectively equalises parental leave rights in South Africa by granting all parents equal entitlements, regardless of gender, sex, colour, or circumstances.

The court declared that parents will now be entitled to four months and ten days of leave, which they may share between them. This decision significantly alters the previous legal framework, which critics argued unfairly distinguished between maternity, parental, and adoption leave.

The matter, which originated with the application initiated by Werner van Wyk and his spouse, Ika van Wyk, challenged the existing provisions in the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA) and the Unemployment Insurance Act (UIF Act).