<h6><strong>The Diplomat</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The Second Vice President and Minister of Labor and Social Economy, Yolanda Díaz, deposited Convention 183 on Maternity Protection at the International Labour Organization (ILO) headquarters in Geneva on Thursday, December 11. The Convention had been previously ratified by Spain.</strong></h4> Deposit is a necessary step for the formalization of an international convention or treaty. The depositary, in this case the ILO, is responsible for ensuring compliance with the convention and acting on behalf of the signatory states. This ratification “is a consequence of the importance of facilitating work-life balance for parents and caregivers,” stated Díaz, who explained that in Spain, maternity and paternity leave has been extended to 19 weeks for both the biological mother and the non-biological parent. Furthermore, in the case of single-parent families, the suspension period has been extended to 32 weeks, more than stipulated in Convention 183, which was adopted in 2000. For Díaz, this extension represents progress in rights, allowing working mothers to exercise their right to dedicate their time to caregiving, if they so wish. Likewise, these types of measures promote a more co-responsible society, aligning with the commitment to guarantee equality of workers in labor rights, to protect family diversity, and to ensure that children are protected regardless of the family in which they grow up. Díaz also affirmed that Spain will remain “at the forefront of expanding labor rights worldwide,” with 140 ILO Conventions ratified, and announced that the ratification of Convention 191 on Safe and Healthy Working Environments, adopted in 2023, is currently underway. “We will spare no effort to pursue the goal of improving working conditions in Spain and globally,” she added. Separately, Díaz met with the ILO Director-General, Gilbert Houngbo, with whom she discussed efforts to adopt a Convention on the platform economy in 2026 and the ILO's support for the Social Economy within the United Nations task force dedicated to this area.
