Comprehensive maternity protection refers to a set of benefits that should be available to all pregnant or breastfeeding working women., comprehensive maternity protection includes health protection at the workplace, maternity leave, cash and medical benefits during maternity leave, non-discrimination, employment protection , breastfeeding or expressing breaks, and access to childcare.
A woman should not have to choose between work and raising a child; there should be structures in place to enable a woman to continue to work after having children, if that is what she wants or needs to do.However, there are many stories of women who try to combine these competing priorities but experience many challenges along the way.In South Africa, we have a progressive Constitution and Bill of Rights, and many policies that refer to different components of maternity protection.
This makes it difficult for everyone to know what protection can and should be provided around the time when a woman has a baby.
SOPHUWC Great article by one of our own, PhD student Katie Pereira-Kotze.