DHA proposes three-month maternity leave

A top level committee of The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) has proposed longer maternity leave for women working in the government sector.
Though just in the proposal stages, the chairperson of the General Medical Committee Dr Atef AbdulLateef Saleh said that maternity leave for women should be three months long.
"We have proposed the leave starting one month before delivery and extended to two months after," he said in an interview with Khaleej Times.
Reduced working hours are also the right of the employee during this period, said the head of the committee that has been tasked to oversee the medical needs of 65,000 employees from 44 government departments.
"Maintaining sick leave records for so many people is a huge task and our five-member committee takes up this responsibility," said Dr Atef.

Besides approving/disapprov-ing sick leave applications, the committee also conducts medical examinations of employees whose leave exceeds six months on medical grounds. The committee then decides if the employee's leave should extend more than six month or he/she should be terminated (if an expatriate), said Dr Atef. Reviewing sick leaves is not a simple task as each application is looked into on a case to case basis by specialised doctors. A final vote then decides whether the application is genuine or not.
The committee also conducts medical exams for employees who develop sickness due to a labour injury and then determines their sick leave period.
"Sometimes people request for car glass tinting of up to 50 per cent due to medical conditions such as allergies and migraines.we conduct medical exams and if needed we issue permits that allow them to get the required tint." Majority of employees, however, are unaware of their rights, according to Dr Atef.
"For example, government employees have a leave called escort leave, which means they can take leave for medical purposes and accompany a blood relative or relative-by-law within the country or abroad."
"If an employee is dissatisfied by the decision, he/she can apply for a review," said Dr Atef.
asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com