The Tribune

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS

Tribune Staff Reporter

lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

LONG-awaited reforms to The Bahamas’ maternity and paternity leave laws remain on track for implementation by mid-2026, Labour and Public Service Minister Pia Glover-Rolle said, describing the overhaul as historic and overdue.

“I’m very pleased to say that this is an historic amendment to our labour legislation,” Ms Glover-Rolle said. “Labour legislation in The Bahamas hasn’t been amended for our generation, practically.”

Asked whether the legislation would be passed before the next general election, she said: “I don’t know when the election is, that would be the prime minister that would have to say when the election is, but the drafting is going on. We’ll go to final consultation. It goes to Cabinet, and it goes to Parliament. It’s urgent, so as soon as possible is when we intend to get it through that process.”

Ms Glover-Rolle explained that her ministry is currently drafting amendments to the Employment Act, the Industrial Relations Act, and General Orders. Once drafting is completed, the proposals will return to stakeholders for final consultation before being submitted to Cabinet and subsequently laid before Parliament.

Public consultations held several months ago focused on expanding maternity leave and introducing paternity leave for the first time under Bahamian law. Under the proposed framework, maternity leave would increase beyond the current 12 weeks to at least 14 weeks, while paid paternity leave would be formally introduced.

Draft recommendations circulated by the ministry propose two weeks of paid paternity leave, accessible once every three years, along with expanded maternity benefits designed to align The Bahamas more closely with regional standards.

The minister’s comments build on statements she made in November 2025, when she said the country was preparing to overhaul its maternity and paternity leave regime by mid-2026 and warned that The Bahamas was “on the lower end of the threshold” both globally and regionally.

Ms Glover-Rolle has also said the government is moving to ratify key International Labour Organisation conventions on maternity protection and occupational safety and health, arguing that stronger parental leave protections are essential to strengthening the country’s social and economic fabric.