Macau casino operator Sands China Ltd says it has launched on Monday (September 1) a new paid parental leave programme, as well as flexible work arrangements in a bid to foster a “family-friendly workplace”.
Under the new programme, eligible full-time Sands China staff can use up to six days of paid leave for purposes of medical appointments or vaccinations for their children within the first year after childbirth, according to a Monday press release.
The casino firm also said staff members that are expecting or have recently welcomed a newborn may apply for the group’s “parenthood support shift”, described as providing the staff regular work shifts “without rotation”, and “up to 90 consecutive daily one-hour exemptions from work to balance childcare and career”.
The announcement cited Paulo Cheong, Sands China’s senior vice president for human resources, as saying: “As Macau’s largest private employer with over 27,000 employees, Sands China has long supported the Macau … government’s family-friendly policies, cultivating a people-oriented corporate culture by providing flexible and diverse workplace measures for team members with family care needs.”
The latest announcement describes the new measures as additional benefits on top of Sands China’s existing maternity and paternity leave policies for its staff.
Female workers with at least one year of service with Sands China are eligible for a 70-day paid maternity leave, and male staff can apply to take five consecutive days of paid paternity leave, the casino operator mentioned in its Monday announcement. These policies were implemented in 2018, according to past corporate releases.
Sands China’s paid maternity and paternity policies were implemented prior to Macau’s labour relation law amendment, with effect from May 26, 2020. Under the amended framework, an employee in Macau’s private sector has the right to a maternity leave of 70 days, and a paternity leave of five working days.
