2025 Labor Law, Q11

X and Y have five children. In order to keep the embers of love burning, they took an annual trip together as a couple. A month later, X got pregnant with their sixth child. She applied for maternity leave with her employer, ABC Corp., which had previously granted her five rounds of maternity leaves for her first five children. This time, ABC Corp. refused to grant her a sixth round of maternity leave for her sixth pregnancy, claiming that she had already exhausted the maximum availment of maternity leaves under the law. Decide with reason(s).

Quick check

Under Republic Act No. 11210, how many instances of pregnancy or miscarriage are covered for maternity leave benefits?

What is the standard paid maternity leave duration granted for live childbirth under the 105-Day Expanded Maternity Leave Law?

Why was ABC Corp.'s refusal to grant employee X maternity leave for her sixth pregnancy legally unjustified?

What contribution requirement must a private sector female employee satisfy to receive SSS maternity leave benefits under R.A. 11210?

Choices available with full access.

How soon must an employer advance the full maternity benefit payment to a qualified female employee under R.A. 11210?

Choices available with full access.

Unlock the full Labor Law answers

Learn more about these topics

1. Expanded Maternity Leave
Under Republic Act No. 11210, otherwise known as the 105-Day Expanded Maternity Leave Law, covered female workers in both the public and private sectors are entitled to paid maternity leave for every instance of pregnancy, miscarriage, or emergency termination of pregnancy. The law significantly enhanced maternity benefits by extending the paid leave duration to 105 days for live childbirth, with an option to extend for an additional thirty days without pay, plus an additional fifteen days of paid leave for qualified female sole parents.

2. Unrestricted Leave Availment
Prior to the enactment of Republic Act No. 11210, maternity leave benefits under the Social Security Law and the Labor Code were strictly limited to the first four deliveries or miscarriages. R.A. 11210 explicitly repealed this numerical cap, guaranteeing paid maternity leave in every instance of pregnancy regardless of frequency. Consequently, an employer cannot deny a female employee's application for maternity leave or refuse benefit computation on the ground that the worker has already exhausted a statutory maximum number of pregnancies.

3. Maternity Benefit Coverage
To qualify for maternity leave benefits under Republic Act No. 11210, a female worker in the private sector must have paid at least three monthly Social Security System contributions in the twelve-month period immediately preceding the semester of her childbirth, miscarriage, or emergency termination of pregnancy. Full payment of the maternity benefit must be advanced by the employer to the female employee within thirty days from the filing of the maternity leave application, subject to subsequent full reimbursement by the SSS.

About these questions and answers
The questions reproduced here are the official texts of the Philippine Bar Examinations, published by the Supreme Court. They are reproduced for study purposes.The suggested answers are the author’s own.

They are not official answers, have no connection with the Supreme Court, the Office of the Bar Confidant, or any bar review institution, and are not endorsed by any of them. Official answer keys, where released, should be preferred over anything here.Nothing on this page is legal advice, and reading it creates no lawyer-client relationship. Do not rely on any suggested answer in an actual legal matter. Consult counsel on your own facts.Suggested answers reflect the law and jurisprudence the author considers applicable as of the date shown.

Where a question comes from an earlier examination, the suggested answer applies the law as it now stands, which may differ from the law in force when the question was given, and may therefore differ from what would have been the correct answer at that time. Where the difference is material, the answer notes it.The practice scoring feature measures wording overlap with the suggested answer. It is not a grade, carries no official weight, and says nothing about whether your reasoning is sound.Errors are possible. If you find one, please tell me and I will correct it.Last reviewed: October 2026