Malé, Maldives – The Judiciary Committee of the Maldives Parliament on Sunday passed the Amendment to the Judges Act (no. 13/2010) proposed by the government, sponsored by MP Abdulla Shaheem Abdul Hakeem of the Kanditheemu constituency.
With the amendment passing the committee stage, the Judiciary Committee will submit its report at the parliament sitting for debate and vote.
The bill proposed to grant,
- One month paternity leave for male judges and
- Six months maternity leave for female judges, upon the birth of a child.
The bill was drafted following a request by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) of the Maldives to grant parental leave to judges. The JSC recommended the same leave duration as above and as stated in the Maldives Employment Act.
While parental leave for judges is being argued at the parliament at present, the pledge has been implemented in the government sector since March 2019 with multiple private companies following suit.
