Office Creche Rules For New Working Mothers: A Complete Guide Under Maternity Benefit Act

Today, it’s nothing short of inspirational to see new mothers head back to the office shortly after giving birth. However, there’s one huge obstacle that stands in their way, one that’s not related to work but home.

No, we are not talking about household chores and responsibilities. This pertains to a more important task—that of taking care of the baby. Especially when both mother and father are working full-time. With families increasingly becoming nuclear nowadays, leaving the little one in the care of the grandparents, as in the olden days, is not always an option.

This is where the creche or childcare facilities play a vital role in caring for the baby in the absence of its parents.

So, what is a creche? The National Creche Scheme, under the Ministry of Women and Child Development, has defined a creche as “a facility which enables parents to leave their children when they are at work and where children are provided stimulating environment for their holistic development. Creches are designed to provide group care to children, usually up to 6 years of age, who need care, guidance, and supervision away from their home during the day.”

A 2014 study, published in the Journal of Managerial Psychology, showed that in organizations that had on-site child-care facilities, employee absenteeism was low. And in India, there are very few companies that offer creche and other child-care options.

Working moms need creches

Debolina Ghosh, an HR professional with HSBC, says that today, when a large number of working new mothers make up the workforce, an on-site creche is the need of the hour. According to her, HSBC is on the right path.

HSBC was among the first to introduce the concept of creches for new mothers, and we are happy that this move has been welcomed with open arms by the employees. As we plan to gradually transition to a hybrid way of working, we believe it’s essential for an employee to access a suite of resources (read creche facilities) on our platform,” says Ms Ghosh. With offices slowly resuming across the country and mothers having to go back to work, some serious questions arise in the mind of a new mother:

• Who will take care of my baby when I’m at work?
• Will my office allow me to work from home when required?
• How useful will a creche be?
• What are the creche rules I need to know? And this is perhaps the most important question of all.

Archita Shashikanth, who works at a subtitling company in Bengaluru, is among those interested in the last question, as currently, in her office, no such facilities exist.

“Shortly after giving birth, I resumed work but was unable to focus fully as my mind would invariably wander back to my baby at home. My parents live in Hyderabad, but asking them to be at home all the time to look after the baby was not feasible, as they have a business to look after. It would’ve been wonderful had my office had a creche facility, but unfortunately, it doesn’t, and although I’ve put forth my grievances to the HR department, I don’t think there will be a fruitful solution to this. It’s going to be one difficult journey, I suppose,” she says. And to think there could be so many others like her, worrying about child care.

The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017

Before understanding the creche guidelines, let’s look at the provisions of the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017, which is applicable to all establishments employing 10 or more people. This Act provides for paid maternity leave of 26 weeks to women workers. Moreover, the Act makes it compulsory for every establishment with 50 employees or more to have in-house creche facilities, and allows women employees to visit the creche up to four times a day.

Benefits of providing creche facilities in the workplace

• As the national creche guidelines say, “Those mothers who breastfeed their babies can conveniently come to feed their child.”
• Women employees can stay stress-free and worry-free while at work. This will lead to better productivity.
• There will be more women in the workforce when organizations provide on-site child-care facilities.
• Creche facilities provide a seamless transition from home to work after a maternity break.
• Such facilities provide employees with flexibility and emotional security.

Despite the benefits of a workplace creche, many establishments are yet to set up on-site creches, as only a few states have notified the rules on creche under the Maternity Benefit Act, 2017.

All states must frame rules and enforce them in letter and spirit so that working mothers across the country can have access to safe, innovative, and convenient child-care facilities to raise their children.

Last updated on: September 11, 2025