The Tribune

By ANNELIA NIXON

Tribune Business Reporter

anixon@tribunemedia.net

Businesses yesterday voiced fears that proposed labour law reforms concerning paternity and maternity leave may impose additional strain by increasing already-high operating costs.

With maternity leave currently standing at 12 weeks, and at least one-third of this time paid by employers, Pia Glover-Rolle, minister of labour and the public service, said the specifics surrounding any potential changes will be revealed in due time. She added that the Government “don’t want to pre-empt final approval of our stakeholders” and that a public presentation is planned.

“The Cabinet has already been presented with the 255 recommendations that were procured via the legislation symposium my ministry hosted in July 2024,” Mrs Glover-Rolle said. “The next step is to take the ‘white paper’ back to the original stakeholders - unions, employer confederations and government agencies.

“We [are] still at the phase of preparing the final recommendations to return for consultations with all of our stakeholders, which will soon go out to them. Upon approval of the final recommendations, we will be able to announce the specifics.”

Some business owners are already voicing concerns about how extended maternity and paternity leave may impact their financial situation. Screws & Fasteners World, a hardware store, employs five people, two of whom are women. Proprietor Patricia Cleare said it can be a “challenge” paying an essential worker on an extended leave.

“I heard about it. I just read, Mr Rolle, the Chamber of Commerce gentlemen, saying that that can be an issue for us with some businesses, and it can be an issue with some of us extending,” Ms Cleare said. “I’m a lady and I have three children, but I do own a business.

“And the 13 weeks alone, and sometimes 14 weeks, actually does put a strain on some businesses where you have to bring in somebody else to actually deal with the demand in your business and try and weather out that storm of 13 to 14 weeks.

“And God help you if the person has to stay longer. But I don’t want to be somebody who will actually stifle somebody’s opportunity. And then, sometimes, some women really need it. You know, back then, they wanted women to actually be homemakers. But to me, I think it’s going to put up even more strain on businesses if they increase it to 13 weeks. Now, I don’t know how far they’re increasing it.”

Ms Cleare added: “I had women working and who had children. Thirteen weeks seems like a long time for some businesses, especially if you are depending on on them. And you still have to pay them a certain amount, which was no problem for me, but the length of time, that was a situation that, you know, we weathered it out.

“But some businesses might not be able to do that. You have other small businesses who cannot do that. [They have] one or two persons [they] are depending on, and sometimes both of them out on maternity leave. That’s a strain on some businesses. So if you’re going to increase it, I know it can be a challenge for other businesses - not only those withbsmall staff. So it’ll be good for us to know what the plan is, how much she’s increasing it to.”

Kenneth McKenzie, owner of Mckenzie’s Fresh Fish & Conch, who employs eight people, mostly women, praised women for being hard workers and independent. He said four months is enough time for new mothers but he does not stand behind paternity leave. He said women “carry all the pain” and “do more hard work”.

“A man never supposed to get paternity leave,” Mr McKenzie said. “To do what? Smoke and drink all the other blocks? That’s something different altogether. That’s for a lady. That’s for the ladies who carry all the pain, and you know they do more hard work than the men these days and time.”

When asked about fathers who want to be active in their child’s life, Mr McKenzie added: “You got a handful of them. I see more women working these days and time now.

“I’m not going to put my ‘X’ on that. Now if it’s for the ladies, I wouldn’t put a triple ‘X’, because they working. Women run the whole world now. I’m a senior man in my 60s. Growing up, all I see is ladies. They’re looking for work. So I give them everything. If they give them four months… they deserve that.”

Patricia Chatti, owner of Cia Monet Organic Candles Soaps and Scents, on the other hand, supports paternity leave. However, she believes it should be limited to a few weeks versus an extended period of time.

“It’s a step in the right direction because, while women are the child bearers, fathers play a pivotal role in parenting as well, and I think they should also have the opportunity to be able to take time off to support the mother and to be there for the early days of the child,” Ms Chatti said.

“It’s an emotional time. It’s a time for bringing families together and spending that initial quality time. So I think fathers should… be able to have some time off as well. So I fully agree with the way forward for the labour laws of The Bahamas.

“For men who are active parents, while they may not be aware or accustomed to this, they would welcome it. And they would also agree that while ‘I may not need all that time off, maybe give me maybe give me a month, maybe give me three week’. Because there are things that a mother is going to need. And even in terms of the bonding side of it.

Ms Chatti continued: “They don’t need to be married. Married or not, once you know you’re having [a baby], then you should be able to do it. Now, because we only could have a child every nine months, dudes can have children every six weeks. So they may have to put a cap on it for them. You have to put a cap on their leave because while we only could have one child every nine months, a man could have a child every day.

“And so they may have to put a cap on the paternal leave for men so they could choose how they want to do it. Once you use up your three months per year, if you decide you want to have two children that year, four children, then you have to divvy it up. Maybe two weeks at a time, three weeks at a time. But you can be afforded the same amount per child, because, as you know, we procreate differently.”

Mrs Glover-Rolle’s announcement that the Government is “aligning local labour policies with international workers’ rights” lines up with the Bahamas National Breastfeeding Association’s (BNBA) call for extended maternity leave and local pastors’ announcement of support for paternity leave.