MUSCAT: The Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI) signed on Monday a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) to implement family friendly policies in the workplace.
In her keynote speech, the Chairperson of the Committee on Women Entrepreneurs, Areej Mohsin Darwish, highlighted the importance of family friendly policies.
“The implementation of family friendly policies has a positive impact on individuals and societies as it contributes to the development of more sustainable and equal societies,“ said Areej, adding: “Focusing on families has a substantial impact on achieving various economic and social objectives, including quality education, public health, and gender equality.” The signing of this memorandum of cooperation with Unicef represents a significant step towards achieving numerous objectives which include the promotion of children's rights, improvement of maternal and child health and support for education, the Chairperson further stated.
Speaking to the Observer, OCCI Chairman Faisal al Rawas shared that the signing stemmed for OCCI’s commitment to social responsibility.
“At OCCI, we strongly believe that the stability of families reflects on the economy,” he said, stressing that that strong family welfare and child support programs can positively influence the country's economy.
Unicef Representative to the Sultanate of Oman, Sumaira Chowdhury, expressed a similar sentiment. Speaking to the Observer, Chowdhury explained that the family friendly measures and policies can benefit both employees and employers in terms of productivity and loyalty.
According to UNICEF Representative, the MOU will advocate for policies such as maternity and paternity leave, breastfeeding rooms, mental health programs within the workplace.
Furthermore, the MoU will work complement the newly issued Labour Law, said Al Rawas. Dubbing the MoU as “progressive and visionary”, Chowdhury expressed the hope that the (MoU) would make a modest contribution to the advancement of workers' rights within the Labour Law.
The Ministry of Labour issued the new Labour Law (53/2023) in August, which included several family-friendly policies such as paid paternity leaves, extending paid maternity leaves from 50 to 98 days, and eliminating maternity leave caps, among other a few.
The new regulations will also provide new working mothers with an hour for childcare counted toward their working hours. According to officials, actions of the memorandum will begin today with workshops targeted at private sector establishments.
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