New maternity, childcare rules for female Dubai government employees

In his capacity as Ruler of Dubai, VP and PM of UAE HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum issued Decree No (14) of 2017 on maternity and childcare leave for female employees of the Dubai government.

The decree aims to promote a balance between career and family, support the rights of working women and provide a legal framework for enhancing gender balance.

The provisions of the decree will be applied retroactively to current maternity leave and nursing breaks of female employees of the Dubai government.

Under the fecree, any full-time or part-time employee in a permanent position is entitled to 90 days of maternity leave from the date of delivery. The employee can also apply to start her maternity leave 30 days before her due date on the condition that the leave is taken continuously. Furthermore, the employee can combine maternity leave, regular annual leave and leave without pay for a maximum of 120 days.

Additionally, the decree states that an employee who has suffered a miscarriage before the 24th week of her pregnancy is entitled to sick leave based on a duly approved medical report. If the employee had a stillbirth or a miscarriage after the 24th week, she is entitled to 60 days of maternity leave after providing an approved medical report.

An employee who gave birth to a child with disability is entitled to childcare leave of one year, which is renewable up to a maximum of three years based on an approved medical report and approval from the concerned senior official in the government entity.

During the maternity leave and childcare leave prescribed in this Decree, the employee will only receive her basic monthly salary; weekends and official holidays are considered part of the maternity leave and childcare leave.

The decree also states that Dubai government entities must establish a nursery for employees’ children below four years if the total number of children of female employees is 20 or above. If the total number of children is less than 20, two or more government entities can jointly establish a nursery. Government entities may also contract nurseries close to their headquarters if the entity does not have adequate space for the nursery.

This decree annuls any other legislation that contradicts or challenges its articles. The decree is valid from 1 March 2017 and will be published in the Official Gazette.

Childcare centres springing up at Chinese workplaces

• Amendments in government policies drive market growth
• Key vendors include Golden Apple Education, Noah Education, Oriental Baby, and Montessori School of Shanghai

Technavio predicts the global preschool or childcare market in China will grow at a CAGR of over 6% between 2016 and 2020. Much of this market’s growth prospects is augmented by recent amendments to government policies. In 2015, the government amended the one-child policy by allowing couples in the country to have up to two children in an attempt to balance out the population development. The population growth along with the increase in disposable income in middle-class families in China is resulting in an increase in preschool enrolments.

“China is currently witnessing a rise in the implementation of childcare services at workplaces. Many organisations in the country are providing daycare centres with personal babysitters at the workplace. Companies collaborate with major leading vendors of childcare centres by implementing their curricula and training methods. Such services by companies are most likely to be adopted by employees as parents can get to meet their children at regular intervals and also reduce their commute time between childcare centres and workplaces,” says Jhansi Mary, Lead Analyst, Education, Technavio Research.

There is increasing emphasis on collaborative learning among childcare service providers due to increasing competition among the players in the market. Many kindergartens and schools are trying to enhance children's skills by relying on interactive and individualized learning experiences driven by new technologies. Many institutions such as Oriental Baby, the Montessori School of Shanghai, and Etonkids Educational Group are also focusing on counseling parents by providing essential and useful information. Furthermore, they also provide necessary equipment such as educational games and teaching materials to be incorporated into a home's infrastructure so that the parents do not have to send their children to kindergartens or preschools.

The key vendors in the preschool or childcare market in China include Golden Apple Education, Noah Education, Oriental Baby, and Montessori School of Shanghai. The market is characterised by the presence of diversified international and regional players, and as all players are competing to gain a greater share of the industry, the market appears highly competitive. International preschool and child care service providers are gradually increasing their footprint in the market and regional vendors find it increasingly difficult to compete with them especially in terms of quality, ambience, and product pricing.

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