Women must be able to carry on breast-feeding when they return to work. This means that there must also be a hygienic place for breastfeeding and expressing milk at the workplace. The breaks need to suit the needs of the mother and child. Employers should provide a hygienic place for breastfeeding and expressing milk at the workplace. The benefits section of the proposed convention will set out what a woman is entitled to in terms of cash and medical assistance to sustain her during her pregnancy and maternity leave.
Maternity leave is meaningless if there is no adequate income support.
It doesn't help to have the right to take leave if you can't survive if you do. This would turn the right to maternity leave into empty words. The wording that was finalised in the 1999 debates does not provide sufficient financial protection for women particularly those in developed countries. For developing countries this amount must at least be equivalent to temporary disability or sickness benefits. There is no minimum rate set out for developed countries.