Ruling 878-20-JP/24 – Maternity leave in cases of death of children

On March 11, 2024, The Constitutional Court issued the ruling 878-20-JP/24, which analyzes the Maternity Leave in case of death of children, from which we highlight:

• The Court analyzes the scope of maternity leave, with the premise that pregnant women have the right to prioritized protection and care of their integral health during pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum.
• The postpartum or puerperium is the stage in which the body progressively recovers from the physical and psychological changes that have occurred, to return to its pre-pregnancy condition. This varies for each person.
• The Court concludes that it is not appropriate to suspend maternity leave due to the death of the newborn child, based on the argument that the reason for the leave has disappeared ignoring the need for the woman’s recovery.
• It argues that suspending maternity leave on the assumption that its sole purpose is to care for the children, would perpetuate the gender stereotype that assigns to women the role of primary caregiver in the family nucleus. And resolves that every working woman has the right to the full enjoyment of her maternity leave, despite the death of her child.