Title: Module 4: Maternity Protection at work: Who are the main stakeholders?
1Maternity Protection Resource Package From
Aspiration to Reality for All
Module 4Maternity Protection at workWho are
the main stakeholders?
2Key contents
This module reviews the roles and means of
actionfor improving maternity protection of the
followingkey stakeholders
- Government
- Employers andtheir organizations
- Trade unions
- Civil society
- Universities and research centres
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3Maternity Protection at workWho are the main
stakeholders?
Many stakeholders play an important role in
achieving universal maternity protection.
- Governments
- Employers and their organizations
- Trade unions
- Civil Society
- Universities and research centres
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4Government (1)
Governments have the main task of drafting,
adopting, implementing and monitoring legislation
including in the area of maternity protection
- Policy research to be able to decide on policy,
a concrete assessment of maternity protection
needs to be made - Ratifying ILO conventions the government's
responsibility to decide whether or not to abide
by international standards - Labour law and social security plays a key role
in promoting universal social security and labour
law that allows for maternity protection - Implementation, monitoring and enforcement make
sure that all initiatives in favour of maternity
protection receive proper funding and adequate
resources for their enforcement - Promoting social dialogue leading discussions
and consultations between all important
stakeholders
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5Government (2)
Examples of what can be done
- Adopt the principles of Convention No. 183 and
consider its ratification - Strengthen legal frameworks and fiscal space for
social security, with particular attention to
maternity protection cover - Ensure staffing, training, funding and tools for
the labour inspectorate on maternity protection - Establish an independent complaints body and
mechanism to which employees and employers can
accede without risking their employment, and
ensure adequate staffing, funding, and training
for it - Improve support for the range and quality of
workplace health facilities, including preventive
health education and maternity care, and support
for workplace measures to prevent transmission of
HIV with voluntary and confidential health checks
and counselling - Raise public awareness and publicize these issues
widely - Review legislation for employment protection and
non-discrimination provisions on the basis of
maternity including the all-important clause of
the burden of proof on the employer
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6Employers and their organizations
Employers are responsible for maternity
protection obligations under the law and can
adopt workplace policies and provide the
frameworks for workplace rules and actions to
prevent and avoid pregnancy-related
discrimination and risks to health.
- Employers organizations can
- Advise their members on legal provisions
- Inform and influence Government during the
preparatory stages of new legislation - Contribute to international debates and law on
maternity protection - Promote the idea that maternity protection and
equal opportunity and treatment in practice
contributes to better business and a healthy
society - Spread information on how enterprises with good
practices have been efficient and successful - Participate in the public debate on equality
issues
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7Trade unions
Trade unions have a vital role to play in raising
awareness and improving maternity protection in
the workplace and beyond. They can
- Advocate for improvements in national and
international law and practice - Underscore statutory rights in collective
bargaining agreements(CBAs see below) - Improve upon legislation through CBAs
- Assist workers in defending their rights
- Raise awareness on maternity protection at work
- Consult and represent women workers
- Negotiate collective agreements on maternity
protection issues with employers and employers
organizations - Develop gender-sensitive approaches to
occupational safety and health - Contribute to research efforts and make womens
experiences at work visible
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8Employers and trade unionsCollective bargaining
agreements
Collective bargaining agreements are
- The result of collective bargaining between
employers and trade unions - Written agreements that contain all the terms and
conditions of employment - Legally binding for a short- to medium-term
period, and are usually renewed after their
expiry - They can serve several purposes in terms of
maternity protection - To implement minimum standards as defined in
national legislation - To improve upon minimum standards as defined in
national legislation - To set new models which are more effective than
national legislation
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9Civil society, universities andresearch centres
The role of civil society is very wide-ranging,
from advocacy and lobbying, research, services,
and monitoring on a range of aspects related to
maternity protection.
- Universities and research centres play a key role
in - Helping shape, monitor and evaluate policy
- Surveying, assessing and developing responses for
maternity protection - Bringing technical expertise and human resources
to other stakeholders
Partnerships Collaboration between stakeholders
can drive creative solutions to improve maternity
protection
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10Key points
- The key partners of governments in maternity
protection are employer and worker
representatives of national or local
organizations. - Governments are responsible for leading the
development of legislation and social security in
consultation with other stakeholders, as well as
for implementing, enforcing and monitoring these
laws. - Employers organizations can contribute to
national and international debates and laws,
advise and assist members on legal provisions and
share good practices among members. - Employers, in collaboration with workers and
their representatives, have a primary role in
conforming working conditions to national law and
practice, through workplace policies and
negotiated agreements. - Trade unions can campaign for improvements in
maternity protection in national and
international law, can provide information and
education for their members, and are responsible
for negotiating collective bargaining agreements
that include elements of maternity protection. - Civil society can also lead action at the
community level with the aim of improving working
and living conditions including as these relate
to maternity protection and workers with family
responsibilities. - Universities and research centres can be
important partners in designing and publishing
research that can credibly inform, help shape,
monitor and evaluate public policy.
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