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The court underscored that the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act supersede any contractual agreements that deny or limit maternity benefits
Maternity benefits are not coterminous with employment tenure, the court stressed, as per the SC’s ruling. (File pic/Getty)
The Madras High Court has ruled that contract employees are also entitled to maternity benefits and that the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961 would prevail over contractual conditions if they deny or offer less favourable benefits.
“By virtue of section 27 (of the Act), the provisions of the 1961 Act will prevail over contractual conditions denying or offering less favourable maternity benefits,” the court emphasised.
A bench comprising Chief Justice KR Sriram and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy delivered this significant decision while dealing with a writ petition filed in 2018 by the MRB Nurses Empowerment Association.
The association, representing nurses employed by the state government under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), sought a direction from the court to ensure they received the mandated 270 days of paid maternity leave as outlined in the Act.
The state government, however, contended that these maternity benefits did not apply to NRHM nurses due to their contractual status. The government argued that contractual nurses were only eligible for limited leave, such as a single day of casual leave each month, and were otherwise excluded from the benefits afforded to regular government employees.
Rejecting the state’s position, the High Court underscored that the provisions of the Maternity Benefit Act supersede any contractual agreements that deny or limit maternity benefits. The court pointed out that, according to section 27 of the Act, its provisions take precedence over any inconsistent laws or regulations.
Referring to the Supreme Court’s recent judgement in Dr Kavita Yadav v Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Department and Others (2024), the bench highlighted that once a female employee fulfils the entitlement criteria specified in section 5(2), she would be eligible for full maternity benefits even if such benefits exceed the duration of her contract.
Maternity benefits are not coterminous with employment tenure, the court stressed, as per the SC’s ruling.
The court allowed the writ petition and directed the department of health and family welfare of Tamil Nadu to consider and dispose of all pending and fresh applications for maternity benefits from NRHM nurses employed on a contractual basis in terms of section 5 of the 1961 Act within three months from the date of receipt of a copy of the present order, or three months from the date of receipt of fresh applications, as the case may be.
