More working mothers will now be able to access the special maternity leave and maternity benefit following a new ministerial decision by Niki Kerameus that broadens the scope of eligible recipients. The new regulations are designed to address situations that have until now created problems for working mothers, in some cases leading to the complete loss of this benefit. The changes to the maternity benefit are built around six key pillars and cover, among others, adoptive mothers, women working part-time or in concurrent employment, mothers employed by seasonal businesses, and those who were previously insured as freelancers or self-employed workers.
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Of particular significance is the change in how a working mother’s actual employment is assessed, as additional working hours — beyond what is formally stipulated in her contract — can now be taken into account.
Changes for adoptive mothers
The first intervention concerns women who initially took on the care of a child as foster mothers and subsequently completed the adoption process. Under the new framework, they can receive the special maternity protection benefit after the adoption is finalized — even if they had already returned to work during the intervening period.
This change aims to bridge the gap that can exist between the start of foster care and the final completion of the adoption.
Additional hours now count for part-time workers
A further change affects how employment is calculated for mothers working under part-time contracts. To determine whether they are entitled to the full amount of the special benefit, any additional hours worked beyond their contracted hours will now also be factored in.
As a result, the calculation will no longer rely solely on the working hours originally specified in the contract, but will also reflect actual hours worked — including any additional hours performed.
Benefit not lost when employer pays full salary
Another change concerns businesses that go above and beyond for their working mothers by paying their employees’ full salaries during maternity and postnatal leave.
In these cases, the mother can now receive the special maternity protection benefit even if she did not previously collect a maternity and postnatal allowance from e-EFKA.
This means that more favorable treatment by an employer will no longer serve as grounds for exclusion from the special benefit.
What applies to concurrent employment
Working mothers with concurrent employment also gain entitlement to the benefit. The key requirement is that they must not be working during the daily hours for which the special maternity protection leave has been granted. This provision therefore allows the benefit to be awarded even where a supplementary professional activity exists, provided it does not encroach on the hours covered by the leave.
A new provision is also introduced for mothers employed by seasonal businesses. The special maternity benefit can continue to be paid even when the business, due to the nature of its operations, does not run year-round. The critical factor is that the mother’s employment relationship must remain active.
Former freelancers and self-employed now included
The sixth change closes yet another gap linked to a mother’s previous insurance status. The special maternity protection benefit is now extended to salaried mothers who received their maternity and postnatal allowance from e-EFKA as non-salaried insured persons — such as freelancers or self-employed workers.
Previous insurance as a non-salaried worker is therefore no longer grounds for exclusion from the benefit when the woman is subsequently employed as a salaried employee.
