What does maternity leave mean?
Maternity leave is a type of employee leave connected to pregnancy, childbirth, recovery, and early childcare. It allows an eligible employee to take time away from work while keeping certain employment rights and benefits, depending on the employee’s country, contract, and local law.
For employers, maternity leave is not only a personal leave matter. It affects staffing, payroll, handover planning, benefits administration, temporary cover, return-to-work arrangements, and employee retention. The employer should understand how long the leave lasts, whether it is paid, who pays for it, what documents are needed, and how the employee’s role will be managed during the leave period.
Maternity leave may be provided through the employer, a social security system, a government benefit, or a combination of these. The exact structure differs by country.
Why maternity leave matters for employers
Maternity leave matters because it is often protected by employment law. Employers should avoid treating pregnancy-related absence as ordinary unpaid leave or performance-related absence unless the local rule clearly allows that treatment.
In Southeast Asia, maternity leave rules differ across Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Thailand. The Philippines, for instance, has a statutory maternity leave framework under the Expanded Maternity Leave Act. Other countries have their own rules on eligibility, duration, pay, employer obligations, social insurance, documentation, and protection from dismissal.
Maternity leave rules in Southeast Asia
Maternity leave length, pay, and eligibility differ across the main Southeast Asian hiring markets. The table below gives a simplified overview of the statutory minimums.
Note: This table is a simplified overview for employer planning. Rules may change and may depend on employee category, contract type, length of service, collective agreements, company policy, and local interpretation. Employers should verify the latest local rules before finalising contracts or payroll treatment.
Several countries also protect pregnant employees from dismissal. In Malaysia, section 41A of the Employment Act 1955 makes it an offence to terminate a pregnant employee except for limited reasons such as misconduct or closure of the business. In Indonesia, Law No. 4 of 2024 protects mothers from dismissal for taking maternity leave.
For SMEs hiring remote employees in Southeast Asia, maternity leave should be planned before it happens. The employment contract, employee handbook, payroll setup, and leave policy should explain how maternity leave is requested, recorded, paid, and coordinated with the employee’s manager.
Weshine’s Employer of Record service can support businesses hiring employees in Southeast Asia without setting up a local entity, including local employment documentation, statutory benefits, payroll, and leave administration.
Practical employer example
A Singapore company employs a finance assistant in Vietnam and a customer support specialist in the Philippines. Both employees tell the company they are pregnant in the same quarter, and the founder assumes both will be away for about three months.
In practice, the Vietnam employee may be entitled to 6 months of leave, paid through social insurance, while the Philippines employee may be entitled to 105 days, with the SSS benefit advanced through payroll and any salary difference paid by the employer. A better approach is to confirm each employee’s local entitlement, pay arrangement, and documents early, then plan handover and temporary cover around the real leave dates.
Common mistakes employers should avoid
A common mistake is assuming maternity leave rules are the same across the region. A policy used for one country may not fit another country’s legal requirements.
Another mistake is failing to plan temporary coverage. If the employee manages customer support, payroll, finance, operations, or client communication, the employer should arrange handover and role coverage before the leave starts.
Employers should also avoid unclear communication around pay. Employees should understand whether maternity leave is paid by the employer, supported by a statutory scheme, or handled through another local mechanism.
Note: Maternity leave requirements may change and can depend on eligibility, employment status, contribution history, medical documentation, and local regulations. Employers should verify the latest country-specific rules before processing maternity leave.
