4 years overdue!

European Women’s Lobby working to protect maternity leave

  • 4 years overdue

    In the beginning of the Summer of 2014, the European Commission threatened to withdraw the Directive in 2014 in the name of ‘red tape’.
    With the forthcoming hearings for the new European Commission, the EWL and its members will seize the opportunity to get the maternity leave directive back on the political agenda.
    As the Commission has an appointed Commissioner on gender equality we now call upon her to take action.
    We invite everyone to make their voice heard to make sure that the (...) Read more

  • Let’s call on the EU decision-makers to #DeliverNow! Join our demonstration in Strasbourg on Tuesday 21st October!

    Let's call on the EU decision-makers to #DeliverNow! Join our demonstration in Strasbourg on Tuesday 21st October!

    [Brussels, 14 October 2014] 4 years ago, on 20th October 2010, the Maternity Leave Directive was successfully adopted by the European Parliament in first reading. It was then blocked in the Council with the excuse that the timing was not right, due to the economic crisis. The European Commission threatened to withdraw the Directive in 2014 in the name of ‘red tape’, as if it was not relevant anymore.
    We invite you to make your voice heard to make sure that the Maternity Directive is back on (...) Read more

  • Cross-party support for Maternity Leave Directive

    Cross-party support for Maternity Leave Directive

    [Brussels, 26 September 2014] The EWL organised a highly successful photo booth event on the Esplanade in front of the European Parliament on Wednesday 24th September. The aim of our action was to demonstrate support among MEPs and members of the public for the Maternity Leave Directive, which was approved by the European Parliament in 2010 but has since fallen off the agenda and dismissed as ‘red tape’.
    The EWL was overwhelmed by the level of cross-party support at our photo-booth event, (...) Read more

  • Why we feel that this campaign is necessary, now, and is well over 2 years overdue!

    Why we feel that this campaign is necessary, now, and is well over 2 years overdue!

    In 2008, the European Commission launched the proposal to amend the Pregnant Workers’ Directive (92/85/EEC) in order to extend maternity leave from the current 14 to 18 weeks, with a mandatory period of 6 weeks (currently 2 weeks). |
    The European Parliament discussed the proposal in the FEMM committee and on 20 October 2010 the European Parliament plenary session adopted its position, allowing for 20 weeks full pay maternity leave, with a so-called “passerelle clause” to combine maternity and (...) Read more

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EWL event "Progress towards a Europe free from all forms of male violence" to mark the 10th aniversary of the Istanbul Convention, 12 May 2021.

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