Invitation for Public Submissions: Labour Laws Amendment Bill [PMB 5-2015] (clause 10)

The Portfolio Committee on Labour (“the Committee”) has before it the Labour Laws Amendment Bill [PMB 5-2015].

The Committee invites interested people and stakeholders to submit written comments on a proposed amendment, hereunder, which seeks to correct a typographical error in section 24(5) of the Unemployment Insurance Act, 2001 (Act 63 of 2001) (“the Act”).

Section 24(5) of the Act currently contains an error where it refers to “17 to 32 weeks” as opposed to “17.32 weeks”, the latter being similar to the provision contained in section 24(4) of the Act which provides as follows:

“(4) For purposes of this section the maximum period of maternity leave is 17.32 weeks.”

The intention was to align benefits payable to a beneficiary who suffers a miscarriage or still-birth with maternity benefits.

Written submissions can be addressed to the Portfolio Committee on Labour (for attention: Zolani Sakasa), 3rd floor, W/S 3/092, 90 Plein Street, Cape Town 8001, or e-mailed to zsakasa@parliament.gov.za or faxed to 086 400 5990. The closing date for submissions is Tuesday, 31 October 2017 at 16h00.

Copies of the proposed amendment can be obtained on Parliament’s website: www.parliament.gov.za or call Zolani Sakasa on Tel: 021-403 3735, cell 083 709 8488  

Amendment of section 24 of Act 63 of 2001, as amended by section 8 of Act 32 of 2003 and section 9 of Act 10 of 2016 

10. Section 24 of the principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for subsection (5) of the following subsection:

‘‘(5) A contributor who has a miscarriage during the third trimester or

bears a still-born child is entitled to a full maternity benefit of [17 to 32] 17.32 weeks;”.

Issued by Ms FS Loliwe MP, Acting Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Labour