With effective 1st January 2023, it is now mandatory to grant 7 consecutive days of paternity leave to male employees in West Malaysia and Labuan as introduced by the new Section 60FA in Employment Act 1955.
Terms and conditions are as follow:
1. Married to the mother – I find this one strange. Does it matter? For me, what’s more important is that the father’s name is in the birth certificate but that’s what written in the law.
2. Restricted to 5 confinements only – This is the tricky part. If the employee has already taken 5x paternity leave in Company ABC. When he leaves Company ABC to Company XYZ, he is no longer entitled to any paternity leave at Company XYZ. So boys, please do not be sneaky and be honest to your new company, k! Besides, kids are so expensive today, really, you plan to have more than 5? Wow!
3. Employed by the same employer for min 12 months immediately before the commencement of paternity leave – The tenure prior 1 Jan 2023, counts too.
4. Notified his employer of the pregnancy at least 30 days from the expected confinement or as early as possible after the birth – The paternity leave doesn’t start at any day as what the father prefers, though. It starts on the day the child is borned.
Also, subject to (1), polygamy is legal for muslims in Malaysia where a man can have up to 4 wives. So it’s totally possible the employee can take up to 5x paternity leave in the same year.
I am glad that daddies are granted extra days off now to help mommies with the babies. At the same time it also promotes gender equality, giving daddies the chance to take on caregiving responsibilities in the child’s upbringing.
Anyhoo, to end this post, this is a funny dad joke I read from the internet:
“Why do fathers take an extra pair of socks when they go golfing?”
“In case they get a hole in one!”
Happy weekend everybody!
#POV #EA1955 #BebelBimbo
