CBC Manitoba: Manitoba parents who had child through surrogacy fighting for mat leave benefits

Under CUPE 204’s collective agreement, maternity leave “is more or less associated with biologically giving birth to a child, and this is where the dispute has arisen over the whole surrogacy issue,” said Bruce Curran, an associate law professor at the University of Manitoba whose main areas of teaching are labour and employment law. 

He reviewed the collective agreement before speaking with CBC.

Curran said speaking generally, employers are allowed to offer top-up payments for parental and maternity leave. The CUPE agreement provides for maternity leave of 17 weeks, and unpaid parental leave up to 63 weeks.

To read the full story, please visit CBC Manitoba.