KUALA LUMPUR, May 5 (Bernama) — The Social and Economic Research Initiative (SERI) has commended the MADANI government’s move to introduce financial assistance for up to 30 days after the 98-day maternity leave period under the Employment Insurance System Act, describing it as a meaningful step in supporting working mothers.
In a statement today, SERI said the initiative acknowledges the challenges women face when returning to work after childbirth, helping to ease financial pressure and provide greater stability for new mothers during the transition period. The move is also a positive step that supports Malaysia’s goal of raising the female labour force participation rate to 63 per cent by 2030.
However, SERI cautioned that financial assistance alone is insufficient without broader structural reforms in the workplace.
“Without broader structural workplace reforms, women continue to face challenges returning to work or advancing their careers,” the organisation said, citing its recent studies, which found that structural challenges remain a key issue affecting working women, particularly mothers.
SERI said the studies found that many women still experience discrimination linked to pregnancy and caregiving responsibilities, with some exiting the workforce due to inadequate post-childbirth support, adding that structural gaps in childcare and workplace policies further contribute to the issue.
“More than 70 per cent of working mothers surveyed viewed workplace childcare as important, but only 4.4 per cent currently have access to such facilities, indicating a significant gap between demand and availability.
“In the absence of formal support, many women rely on informal care arrangements, with 36.8 per cent depending on family members. Meanwhile, 41.7 per cent of respondents cited the lack of available workplace childcare as the main barrier, underscoring persistent accessibility challenges,” it said.
SERI said the studies highlighted the importance of workplace flexibility, with 74.5 per cent of respondents indicating a need for flexible working hours and 70.1 per cent preferring the work-from-home (WFH) option, suggesting that financial assistance alone is insufficient without supportive workplace policies.
In the same statement, SERI managing director Rashaad Ali said these findings show that while post-maternity financial support is important, it must be complemented by workplace structures that enable mothers to return, remain, and progress in their careers.
Meanwhile, SERI senior researcher Alicia Lee said there is also a need to strengthen shared parental leave policy so that caregiving responsibilities can be more evenly distributed, rather than falling primarily on mothers.
Alicia said countries such as Singapore have introduced a 10-week shared parental leave scheme as of April 2026, reflecting a shift towards more balanced caregiving support.
On May 1, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, while delivering the national-level Workers’ Day 2026 message, said the government will introduce the Post-Maternity Leave Allowance (EPCB) as a progressive step to support women’s participation in the workforce, following a slight decline in the labour force participation rate among women, partly due to maternity commitments.
— BERNAMA