New Zealand gives parents three days paid leave after a miscarriage or stillbirth in world-first law

Working mothers and their partners will be allowed to take paid leave after suffering a miscarriage or stillbirth in New Zealand after a unanimous vote by lawmakers, in what is believed to be one of the first provisions of its type in the world.

The bereavement allowance, passed by parliament late Wednesday, gives employees three days’ leave when a pregnancy ends with a stillbirth, rather than forcing them to use their sick leave.

Lawmaker Ginny Andersen said a stillbirth should be recognised with dedicated bereavement leave but the stigma that surrounds the issue meant many people were reluctant to discuss it.

Jacinta Ardern has made New Zealand the first nation to give parents paid leave after they have a miscarriage or stillbirth 

‘The grief that comes with miscarriage is not a sickness; it is a loss, and that loss takes time — time to recover physically and time to recover mentally,’ she told parliament.

Andersen said the leave extends to a woman’s partner if she suffers a miscarriage, as well as to people who were attempting to have a child through surrogacy.

She said the law continued the New Zealand parliament’s role in pioneering women’s rights, most notably on voting rights and equal pay.

‘I can only hope that while we may be one of the first, we will not be one of the last, and that other countries will also begin to legislate for a compassionate and fair leave system that recognises the pain and the grief that comes from miscarriage and stillbirth,’ she said.  

The legislation applies to parents, their partners, and parents planning to have a child through adoption or surrogacy. 

Parents will be entitled to  up to three days of paid leave after a miscarriage meaning they won’t have to access their sick leave