Algeria: Jasour – News Desk
The Committee on Health, Social Affairs, Labor, and Vocational Training at the National People’s Assembly held a meeting dedicated to discussing a draft law aimed at amending and supplementing the law on social insurance, specifically regarding the extension of maternity leave.
During the discussions, MPs focused on several key points, most notably clarifications on how to apply maternity leave in exceptional cases for children with special needs or severe illnesses.
At the meeting, representatives of the National Social Insurance Fund for salaried workers provided detailed explanations about the proposed amendment, which stipulates extending maternity leave by an additional 14 weeks when giving birth to a child with special needs or a severe illness, with the possibility of further extending it to 24 weeks if necessary.
The MPs emphasized several key points during the discussions, particularly regarding how to apply maternity leave in exceptional cases for children with special needs or severe illnesses.
They stressed the necessity of attaching the amendment with clear regulatory texts that define the implementation mechanisms and clarify how to calculate daily compensations after deductions.
Committee members also suggested providing an accurate and comprehensive list of severe illnesses and special needs covered.
Additionally, they proposed ensuring flexible options for working mothers, including the potential adoption of a digital platform to facilitate procedures and ensure transparency.
National Solidarity, Family, and Women’s Affairs Minister Soraya Moulouji revealed the extension of maternity leave by 14 consecutive weeks after the legal period of maternity leave has ended.
Moulouji stated, after a hearing by the Committee on Health, Social Affairs, Labor, and National Solidarity in the Council of the Nation, that this extension of maternity leave concerns working women who are forced to stop working due to the health condition of their child with special needs or severe illness, at their request, with the benefit of daily compensations amounting to 100 percent of their daily wage.
