Denial of right to maternity leave

A 1998 survey of maternity leave and health benefits mandated by law in 152 countries found that 80% of the countries offered paid maternity leave to workers. About one third of them permitted leaves of more than 14 weeks. The other 20% of the countries, however, either offer only unpaid leave, or have no specific legislation governing maternity leave. Hungary allows 24 weeks of paid leave, Canada 17, Spain and Romania each 16. In the USA the only law mandating maternity leave is a general one, permitting workers to take up to 12 weeks unpaid leave for a variety of reasons, including childbirth.