Old Mutual Extends Maternity, Paternity Leaves for Women and Men

In order to foster a conducive work environment and advance gender equality, among other things, Old Mutual Kenya has increased maternity leave for employees to four months.

Parental leave was previously limited to three months.

The extension will benefit women who experience child loss (miscarriage) as well as births.

“We recognize that the journey to motherhood is different for every woman, and they need support in each season. Our new measures are designed to create a supportive environment for all our staff and promote gender equality,” said the company’s Group Human Capital Executive East Africa, Nkirote Njiru.

To support spouses, paternity leave has also been extended from two weeks to one month.

At yesterday’s Old Mutual Women Network (OWN) breakfast event, which brought together women from across the organization to discuss and connect, the announcement was made.

OWN was established in 2016 to give women in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, and South Sudan a platform to interact, discuss, and advance themselves.

Six pillars serve as the foundation for all of its activities: community engagement, networking, coaching and mentoring, diversity and inclusivity, care and sharing, and empowerment in business savvy.

“Technology can be an equalizer that provides platforms for women to learn, get progressive jobs, connect, and bring in the female view that is sometimes forgotten when building products or services,” Microsoft Africa Development Centre MD Catherine Muraga said.

A diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging policy will be created by Old Mutual in order to promote equity and equality for all.

In order to advance gender equality beyond the recruiting stage, the policy—which is presently going through a consultation phase to determine its framework—will take into account criteria including age, religion, talent, and people with disabilities.

“This month, we have an exciting opportunity to explore how the tech world has impacted gender dynamics,” OWN East Africa Patron Anne Nyamu stated.

“As aligned with this year’s IWD theme, we shall host a tech extravaganza series, which will see women in tech sharing their experiences and the opportunities in this space that we can leverage to better our productivity.”