Saint Kitts and Nevis - Maternity protection - 2011

July 2012

NORMAL

Protection of Employment Act, 1986. as amended by Protection of Employment (Amendment), Act 2001.

Social Security (Benefits) Regulations, 1981. S.R.O. No. 16. Official Gazette, 1981-05-29, as amended by the Social Security (Benefits) (Amendment) Regulations 1986, S.R.O. No. 4, Ovvicial Gazette, 1986-07-31, N.7.

St. Kitts and Nevis, Social Security Programs Throughout the World: The Americas, 2007 (released 2008)

Social Security Programs Throughout the World: The Americas, 2011

No employee shall be entitled to maternity leave unless she has worked for the employer from whom she claims such benefit for not less than one hundred and fifty days within the period of the one year immediately preceding the date of her confinement.

An employee shall, prior to her confinement give notice to her
employer that she expects to be confined within six weeks from the date of such notice.

An employee who has been confined shall within one week of her confinement, give notice to her employer of the date on which she was confined.

The employer shall, on receipt of a notice form an employee under
section (2), permit that employee to absent herself form employment until the expiry of the remainder of the period of maternity leave for which she is eligible under the provisions of subsection (1) of section 25 calculated form the day of her confinement.

An employee shall be entitled to thirteen weeks’ maternity leave, at least two weeks up to and including the date of her confinement and at least six weeks immediately from that date.

13 weeks

In the case of illness medically certified arising out of the pregnancy or out of confinement, she shall be entitled to an additional period of leave not exceeding three months.

Parental leave is not provided

Paternity leave is not provided for.

Subject to the provisions of these Regulations, maternity allowance and maternity grant shall be awarded to a woman who is an insured person in respect of her pregnancy and confinement and maternity grant shall be awarded to a woman who is the wife of an insured person in respect of her pregnancy and confinement: Provided that if a woman is at the same time herself an insured person and the wife of an insured person maternity grant shall be awarded to her either as the insured person or as the wife of the insured person and not in both capacities.

Maternity allowance shall be awarded only if the insured person has been an insured person for at least thirty-nine contribution weeks and if not fewer than twenty-six contributions have actually been paid by or on behalf of, or credited by virtue of Regulations 59 to, that person in those contribution weeks, being the contribution weeks immediately preceding the contribution week in which occurs the day which is six weeks before the expected day of confinement or in which occurs the day form which the allowance is claim, whichever is the later.

Maternity grant shall be awarded only if not fewer than twenty-six contributions have actually been paid by or on behalf of the insured person during the thirty-nine contribution weeks immediately preceding the week in which occurs the day of confinement.

13 weeks

65 per cent

Social security