That Ms Rachel Lin, 35, would soon be going on maternity leave did not faze the multinational company, which took a long-term view of what she could contribute.

UBS and another family-friendly firm - a local events company with just 35 employees - received the thumbs-up yesterday from NTUC deputy secretary-general Halimah Yacob, amid growing concern from unionists that mothers will face increased discrimination at work with the bumping-up of leave benefits.

The Singapore firm in question, The Event Company, has twice hired pregnant employees whom they felt were capable and experienced.

Madam Halimah singled it out ahead of a closed-door dialogue with some 400 unionists and employers on the Government's new pro-baby incentives.

'Our slogan must be, 'Hire on merit' not, 'Fire! She's married',' she urged in her speech.

Aimed at boosting a fertility rate that has been in decline for over 30 years, the new incentives include extending paid maternity leave from three to four months, and giving the working parent of an infant up to 12 days of paid and unpaid childcare leave a year.

UBS has gone one step further than the national policy. All its employees - and not just high-fliers like Ms Lin - are entitled to claim up to $3,000 for maternity-related expenses.

Companies that recognise and give room for employees' family commitments inspire loyalty, said the public relations professional of 12 years, although the mother of one is not sure if she will have more children.

However, the onus is not just on companies to create a good work-life balance as working mothers also need to be proactive in keeping employers and colleagues informed of their plans, said The Event Company's marketing communications director Jeanette Lee.

'We can devise flexible work arrangements for staff who are working mums, but it is important they also give us early notice if they need to take time off,' she added.

The labour movement strongly supports the expanded leave benefits, but the challenge lies in working with companies to implement them, Madam Halimah told reporters.

Hence the importance of dialogues like the one organised by the NTUC yesterday, so that differences can be ironed out and misunderstandings clarified.

The key thing is to 'strengthen the social consensus' that babies are important and that workers are 'not just a digit to be replaced but also fathers, mothers, sons and daughters', she said.

clare@sph.com.sg