Shoko Kawata, Japan's youngest female mayor, has made history by becoming the first sitting mayor in the country to take maternity leave. Elected in 2023 at the age of 33, Kawata's decision is being seen as a landmark moment in a nation where women continue to face significant workplace and political barriers. The move has sparked conversations about gender equality, work-life balance, and the challenges faced by working mothers in Japan. This report looks at why Kawata's decision is drawing national attention and what it could mean for the future of women in leadership.

Kawata Defies Traditional Norms: Becomes First Japanese Mayor To Avail Maternity Leave

Sports, Tennis: The PIF WTA Maternity Fund Program "will offer benefits to more than 320 eligible WTA players", the Women's Tennis Association said in a statement.

Tennis stars welcome Saudi PIF’s ‘up to 12 months maternity leave’ initiative

A tribunal made a company pay its former female employee a payout of more than £28,000 after they found that she was fired from her job because she got pregnant again at the end of her maternity leave.

Office sacks woman for coming back from maternity leave with another pregnancy

Raising children can be expensive, irrespective of which country you are residing or are a citizen of. However, as per a recent report from the YuWa Population Research Institute, China is one of the most expensive places to raise children.

The price of parenthood: China among the most expensive places to raise children, finds report

Google, which laid off around 6 per cent of its total workforce in January, is reportedly adopting more cost-cutting measures, like not making payment for maternity and medical leaves which it approved to its former employees.

Google not paying for approved maternity leave, claims laid-off employees

China has very quickly shifted from one-child policy and forcing women to get abortions, to now mulling over giving an additional six months of maternity leave. Reason?

In need of more babies, this Chinese province is thinking of 1-year paid maternity leave

Congress is now considering four weeks of paid family and medical leave, down from the 12 weeks that were initially proposed in the Democrats’ spending plan. If the plan becomes law, the United States will no longer be one of six countries in the world — and the only rich country — without any form of national paid leave.

The world ‘has found a way to do this’: The US lags on paid leave

Finland has announced plans to offer men and women equal paid parental leave as well as an extension of the total family allowance from 11.5 months to just over 14 months.

Finland to offer equal paid parental leave to mothers and fathers

Two male employees in Japan sued their employers for alleged harassment after taking paternity leave, a case that again shone a spotlight on the country's ruthless work culture.

Japan parental leave case puts spotlight on workers' rights

The captain of the New Zealand women's cricket team Amy Satterthwaite will become the first player to benefit from new contract conditions that guarantee her core salary while on maternity leave, the country's governing body (NZC) said.

New Zealand captain first to benefit from new maternity provisions

The Ministry of Labour and Employment on Friday clarified that there is a proposal to pay employers for extended maternity benefit from government budget and not from any labour welfare cess.

Maternity leave pay to be reimbursed from government budget

They will get maternity leave of 26 weeks (about 180 days)

Women govt employees who have surrogate children to get paid maternity leave

Tweaking of various labour welfare legislations and gross misappropriation of data has become a dominant feature in India

International Women's Day: The female workers in the nation's garment factories

The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill 2016 increases maternity leave from 12 to 26 weeks (explained by infographics)

Mothers could get longer maternity leaves in India

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