Councillor Chris Harris

The City of Sydney Council has been urged by the Greens to provide 18 weeks paid maternity leave for employees in line with an endorsement by the NSW Local Government Association.

Extending the leave from 14 to 18 weeks would show that the City of Sydney values parenting and recognises the huge investment women make to acquire degrees and skills which ultimately benefit not only themselves but the organisation that employs them.

There are very real economic benefits to be gained by an organisation in providing  paid maternity leave. It leads to increased employee productivity and loyalty and reduces recruitment and training costs as the number of employees returning to work after paid maternity leave increases. It also improves morale and job satisfaction.

We need to foster ongoing relationships with our working-mother employees that value their educational investment, hard work and career aspirations.

At the Council meeting on May 11, I asked the CEO to consider extending the maternity leave to 18 weeks in the current round of wage and salary negotiations with unions.

The Greens also want consideration to be given to establishing parental leave for supporting parents of new born and adopted children and to extend maternity leave, where legally possible, to same sex couples.

The motion below was passed unanimously at Council on Monday, May 11.

 MATERNITY LEAVE (S063668)
1. By Councillor Harris -

The City of Sydney Council:
1. Notes that maternity leave provides critical financial support to City of Sydney
employees who choose to care for newborn infants on a full time basis.

2. Notes that there are corresponding economic benefits to the City of Sydney in
retaining skilled and experienced staff, on a full time or part time basis, when staff return to work after the birth of children.

3. Notes the endorsement of 18 weeks maternity leave by the NSW Local
Government Association.

4. Requests that the CEO consider extending maternity leave from 14 weeks to 18 weeks for City of Sydney employees in the current round of wage and salary
negotiations with the Unions.

5. Requests that the CEO report to Council on additional measures the City can take to extend parental leave, such measures:

 (a) being designed to facilitate the needs and personal choices of:
     (i) the parents of a new born child – which could include the biological
         father and mother or a non-biological co-parent, such as in the case of
         same sex couples;
     (ii) persons adopting children; and
     (iii) persons who may assume the care of a child or children, for example,
          as a result of the death or incapacity of their parents;
(b) to include the option of paid leave being available in these circumstances to
parents and other parents responsible for the care of children, other than the
primary care giver.