HAMDAN BIN MOHAMMED: Paid maternity leave approved

Dubai Crown Prince and Dubai Executive Council chairman Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Al-Maktoum has approved three months of paid maternity leave for Dubai government employees, effective from 1 March – “as part of our efforts to support families”. “This will help employees have closer family bonds and enhance their sense of family stability,”, he said in a statement on 18 January. New mothers will also be allowed time off each day to breastfeed their babies and employees who have a baby with special needs will be granted paid leave.