Background:

Maternity protection rights incorporate comprehensive benefits that should be available to pregnant or breastfeeding working women.

Research Aim:

To describe South Africa’s maternity protection legal and policy landscape and compare it to global recommendations.

Method:

A prospective cross-sectional comparative policy analysis was used to review and describe national policy documents published from 1994–2021. Entitlements were mapped and compared to International Labour Organization standards. The document analysis was supplemented by interviews conducted with key national government department informants. Thematic analysis was used to evaluate policy and interview content.

Results:

Elements of maternity protection policy are incorporated into South Africa’s constitutional dispensation, and some measures are consistent with international labor and social security standards. However, the policy framework is fragmented and difficult to interpret. The fragmented policy environment makes it challenging for employees to know their maternity rights’ entitlements and for employers to understand their responsibilities. Confusion regarding maternity protection rights is amplified by the complexity of ensuring access to different forms of maternal protection in pre- and postnatal stages, oversight by multiple government departments, and heterogenous working environments.

Conclusions:

Maternity protection in South Africa is fragmented and difficult to access. Overcoming these challenges requires legislative and implementation measures to ensure greater policy coherence and comprehensive guidance on maternity protection rights. Addressing gaps in maternity protection in South Africa may provide insights for other countries with shortcomings in maternity protection provisions and could contribute to improved breastfeeding practices.

中文翻译：

---

南非生育保护权的立法和政策：零散的事态

背景：

生育保护权利包含孕妇或哺乳期工作妇女应享有的综合福利。

研究目的：

描述南非的生育保护法律和政策环境，并将其与全球建议进行比较。

方法：

前瞻性横断面比较政策分析用于审查和描述 1994-2021 年发布的国家政策文件。权利被映射并与国际劳工组织的标准进行比较。文件分析得到了对主要国家政府部门线人的采访的补充。主题分析用于评估政策和访谈内容。

结果：

生育保护政策的内容被纳入南非宪法规定，一些措施符合国际劳工和社会保障标准。然而，政策框架是分散的，难以解释。分散的政策环境使雇员难以了解其生育权的权利，而雇主也难以了解其责任。确保在产前和产后阶段获得不同形式的孕产妇保护的复杂性、多个政府部门的监督以及异质的工作环境，加剧了对孕产妇保护权利的混淆。

结论：

南非的生育保护分散且难以获得。克服这些挑战需要立法和实施措施，以确保在生育保护权利方面有更大的政策连贯性和全面指导。解决南非生育保护方面的差距可能会为其他在生育保护规定方面存在缺陷的国家提供见解，并有助于改善母乳喂养实践。