In a significant decision, the Punjab & Haryana High Court has ruled that an employee’s service cannot be terminated while she is on maternity leave. This ruling reinforces job protection for women and upholds their rights under maternity benefits.
Court’s Stand on Maternity Leave Protection
Justice Harsimran Singh Sethi, while delivering the judgment, stated that once an employee is on maternity leave, her leave period cannot be shortened to terminate her service. Instead, the employer must wait until the employee returns from maternity leave before taking any action regarding her job status.
The court was hearing multiple petitions related to the regularization of services of temporary employees. Addressing concerns about job security, the court further clarified that temporary employees cannot be replaced by another set of temporary workers under the same conditions. However, they can be replaced by regular employees.
“The petitioners will not be replaced by another set of temporary employees on the same terms and conditions on which the petitioners are working,” the court stated.
Specific Case of Maternity Leave Violation
During the hearing, the court observed that in one particular case, an employee named Balvir Kaur had her maternity leave cut short, leading to her termination. The court found no valid justification from the respondents for curtailing her maternity leave and terminating her employment.
As a result, the court directed that Balvir Kaur should be paid her full salary for the sanctioned maternity leave period. Additionally, her termination would only take effect after her maternity leave was completed.
“The respondents are hereby directed to pay salary to petitioner Balvir Kaur for the maternity period for which leave was already sanctioned by the competent authority but was wrongly curtailed,” the court ordered.
Furthermore, the court instructed that the pending salary arrears for Balvir Kaur should be released within eight weeks.
This ruling strengthens maternity rights in India and sets a legal precedent for protecting working women from unfair termination during maternity leave.
-
-
-
-
-
-
