Discussing female menstruation publicly is
something of a taboo in Zambia.
This is no doubt why a provision in the
country’s labour law that allows female
workers to take off one day a month is
known as Mother’s Day, even though it
applies to all women, whether or not they
have children.
The legal definition is not precise – women
can take the day when they want and do not
have to provide any medical justification,
leading some to question the provision.
“I think it’s a good law because women go
through a lot when they are on their menses
[periods],” says Ndekela Mazimba, who
works in public relations.
Ms Mazimba is neither married nor does she
have children but she takes her Mother’s
Day every month because of her gruelling
period pains.
“You might find that on the first day of your
menses, you’ll have stomach cramps –
really bad stomach cramps. You can take
whatever painkillers but end up in bed the
whole day.
“And sometimes, you find that someone is
irritable before her menses start, but as they
progress, it gets better. So, in my case, it's
just the first day to help when the symptoms
are really bad.”
Women in Zambia do not need to make prior
arrangements to be absent from work, but
can simply call in on the day to say they are
taking Mother’s Day.
An employer who denies female employees
this entitlement can be prosecuted.
Ms Mazimba’s boss, Justin Mukosa,
supports the law and says he understands
the pressure women face in juggling careers
and family responsibilities.
A married man himself, he says the measure
can have a positive impact on women’s
work:
“Productivity is not only about the person
being in the office. It should basically hinge
on the output of that person.”
But he admits there are problems with the
current system in terms of losing staff at
short notice and also the temptation for
people to play the system:
“It could be abused in the context that
maybe an individual might have some
personal plans they wish to attend to so she
takes Mother’s Day on the day,” he said.
Not everyone is so supportive of Mother’s
Day, and there are many women among the
critics.
Mutinta Musokotwane-Chikopela is married
and has three children.
She has a full-time marketing job but never
takes Mother’s Day, arguing that it
encourages laziness in working women.
“I don’t believe in it and I don’t take it.
Menses are a normal thing in a woman’s
body; it’s like being pregnant or childbirth,”
she says.
“I think women take advantage of that,
especially that there’s no way of proving
that you are on your menses or not.”
Ms Chikopela says the provision should have
been made more clear in the law.
“The problem in Zambia is that we have too
many holidays – including a holiday for
national prayers. So I guess Mother’s Day
makes those that love holidays happy.”
The Zambia Congress of Trade Unions
(ZCTU), the umbrella body representing the
country’s workers, is also a supporter of the
law.
But the entitlement “would have to be
forfeited” if a woman were to take it on a
day that she was not on her period, says
Catherine Chinunda, national trustee at
ZCTU.
“We have been educating women about
Mother’s Day, telling them that on that day,
they are supposed to rest and not even go
shopping or do other jobs because that is
wrong,” she says.
The law itself provides no guidance about
what is allowed and it would appear that
very few, if any, employers have internal
policy guidance in that respect.
She dismisses the idea that men should also
get a day off every month, as has been
suggested by some:
“Men sometimes go to drink and miss
work…. they don’t know how it feels to be
on menses.”
But while praising the concept of Mother’s
Day, some argue that the reality is bad for
business.
“Your superiors may have planned work for
you to do and when you suddenly stay away
from work, it means work will suffer, says
Harrington Chibanda, head of the Zambia
Federation of Employers.
“Imagine a company that has a number of
employees and six or seven take Mother’s
Day on the same day. What will happen to
productivity?” he asks.
Labour Minister Joyce Nonde-Simukoko, a
former trade union activist, tells me that
Mother’s Day was initially informally
observed in the 1990s before eventually
being brought into law.
But she has stern words for anyone thinking
of using the entitlement to bunk off work:
“If you absent yourself yet you are found in a
disco house, then it will not be taken as
Mother’s Day.
“You shouldn’t even leave town, be found
doing your hair or shopping. You can be
fired.
For example, somebody was found farming
after taking Mother's Day and she was
fired.”
One of the problems with the law is that it
does not make this explicit, leading to
confusion among employers and employees
alike.
But perhaps even more than the practical
benefits, it is the intention and the spirit of
the legislation that many Zambians support.
As Linda Kasonde, president of the Law
Association of Zambia, explains:
“The reason why Mother’s Day is important
within the Zambian context is that it
recognises that women are the primary care-
givers in our society – regardless of whether
they are married or not.”

source: http://www.conscienceradiong.com/news/menstruation-law-sparks-debate-in-zambia.php

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