"SEC. 14-A. Maternity Leave Benefit.

A female member who has paid at least three (3) monthly contributions in the twelve-month period immediately preceding the semester of her childbirth or miscarriage shall be paid a daily maternity benefit equivalent to one hundred percent (100%) of her average daily salary credit for sixty (60) days or seventy-eight (78) days in case of caesarian delivery, subject to the following conditions: "(a) That the employee shall have notified her employer of her pregnancy and the probable date of her childbirth, which notice shall be transmitted to the SSS in accordance with the rules and regulations it may provide; "(b) The full payment shall be advanced by the employer within thirty (30) days from the filing of the maternity leave application; "(c) That payment of daily maternity benefits shall be a bar to the recovery of sickness benefits provided by this Act for the same period for which daily maternity benefits have been received; "(d) That the maternity benefits provided under this section shall be paid only for the first four (4) deliveries or miscarriages; "(e) That the SSS shall immediately reimburse the employer of one hundred percent (100%) of the amount of maternity benefits advanced to the employee by the employer upon receipt of satisfactory proof of such payment and legality thereof; and "(f) That if an employee member should give birth or suffer miscarriage without the required contributions having been remitted for her by her employer to the SSS, or without the latter having been previously notified by the employer of the time of the pregnancy, the employer shall pay to the SSS damages equivalent to the benefits which said employee member would otherwise have been entitled to.

Maternity Leave Under Article 133(a) of the Labor Code, Every employer shall grant to any pregnant woman employees who has rendered an aggregate service of at least six months for the last twelve months, maternity leave of at least two weeks prior to the expected date of delivery and another four weeks after normal delivery or abortion, with full pay based on her regular or average weekly wages. From the above provision, a qualified pregnant woman employee shall be entitled maternity leave of at least two weeks prior to expected date of delivery and another four weeks after normal delivery or abortion. Thats a total of six weeks maternity leave. (Note: Article 133, particularly provisions pertaining to benefits and procedure for availment, must give way to Social Security Act.) Leave extension Maternity leave may be extended on account of illness arising out of the pregnancy, delivery, abortion or miscarriage, which renders the woman unfit for work. Extended maternity leave is without pay, but may be charged against any unused leave credits. Maternity Benefits under SSS Law

A pregnant woman member of SSS who has paid at least three monthly contributions in the twelve-month period immediately preceding the semester of her childbirth or miscarriage shall be paid a daily maternity benefit. Amount SSS maternity benefit shall be equivalent to 100% of the pregnant employees average daily salary credit for 60 days, or 78 days in case of caesarian delivery. Time of payment The full payment of maternity benefits shall be advanced by the employer within 30 days from the filing of the maternity leave application. Who makes the payment The SSS shoulders the payment of maternity benefits. But the procedure is that the payment is to be initially advanced by the employer, subject to immediate reimbursement by SSS. Checklist for Availment 1. The pregnant woman employee must have paid at least three monthly contributions within the 12-month period immediately preceding the semester of her childbirth or miscarriage. 2. She has given the required notification of her pregnancy through her employer if employed, or to the SSS if separated, voluntary or self-employed member. 3-monthly Contribution Illustration To avail of maternity benefits, the woman employee must have paid at least three monthly contributions within the 12-month period immediately preceding the semester of her childbirth or miscarriage. To illustrate, assume that the projected date of birth is March 2010. 1. The semester of childbirth is the months from October 2009 to March 2010. This is also called the semester of contingency. 2. The 12-month period immediately preceding the semester of childbirth or miscarriage would be from October 2008 to September 2009. 3. Now, to avail of the benefits, the employee must have paid at least 3 monthly contributions from January 2007 to December 2007. Note that this requirement supersedes Article 133, which requires that the woman employees must have rendered an aggregate service of at least six months for the last twelve months. Valid marriage not required

Unlike in paternity leave where valid marriage is a requisite for availment, the existence of a valid marriage is not required to avail of maternity leave benefits. Limitation on Availment Entitlement to maternity leave under the Labor Code and maternity benefits under the SSS Law applies only for the first four delivery. Bar to recovery of sickness benefits. That payment of daily maternity benefits is a bar to the recovery of SSS sickness benefits for the same period for which daily maternity benefits have been received. Effect of Failure of Employer to Remit Contribution. If the employer fails to remit the required contributions, or to notify SSS of the time of the pregnancy, the employer shall pay to the SSS damages equivalent to the benefits which said employee member would otherwise have been entitled to. Sample Computation:

SSS COMPUTATION OF MATERNITY BENEFIT 1. Exclude the semester of contingency (Delivery, Miscarriage or Abortion) (Semester refers to two successive quarters ending in the quarter of contingency) 2. Count 12 months backward starting from the month immediately preceding the semester of contingency. 3. Identify and add the six highest Monthly Salary Credits (MSC) within the 12 month period preceding the semester of contingency. 4. Divide the total MSCs by 180 days to arrive at the Daily Maternity Allowance. 5. Multiply the Daily Maternity Allowance by 60 for normal delivery or miscarriage or 78 days for cesarean delivery to get the total maternity benefit. However, in case a member dies before the lapse of 60 or 78 days from the date of contingency, the number of days to be considered in the computation should be from the start of the employees maternity leave up to the day prior to the date of death. Example: Contingency - August 5, 1998 Start of Maternity Leave - August 1, 1998 1. The semester of contingency is April 1998 to Sept. 1998. 2. The 12 month period prior to the semester of contingency is April 1997 to March 1998.

3. The total MSC which is the total of the of the six highest MSCs is 63,000 (10,000 x 3) + (11,000 x 3). 4. The Daily Maternity Allowance would be 350.00 (63,000 / 180). 5. The maternity benefit due to the member would be P21,000 (350.00 x 60) in case of normal delivery/miscarriage and P27,300 (350.00 x 78) in case of cesarean delivery. In case the member died on August 31, 1998, the maternity benefit due is P10,500 (350.00 x 30) i.e. August 1, 1998 to August 30, 1998.