source: Department of Labor: Paid FMLA
The Need for Paid Leave:
- Only 12 percent of U.S. private sector workers have access to paid family leave through their employer.
- Too many workers still cannot afford to take unpaid leave because of the loss of income it entails, or have to cut their leave short because of financial or workplace pressures.
- Millions of workers have caregiving responsibilities for both young children and aging parents.
The Benefits of Paid Leave:
- Paid maternity leave can increase female labor force participation by making it easier for women to stay in the workforce after giving birth, which contributes to economic growth. When parents are better supported at work through paid family and medical leave, they are also less likely to rely on public assistance benefits.
- Paid leave leads to better outcomes for parents and children. Maternity leave improves child health outcomes, including increased birthweight, decreased premature births and decreased infant mortality. Paid leave encourages men to take paternity leave and serve as caregivers, which has a number of positive effects for families.
- Paid maternity leave increases worker retention and reduces turnover, saving businesses significant costs associated with replacing employees. After California and New Jersey enacted paid family leave benefits, most businesses in those states reported positive or neutral experiences and few negative effects.
The Obama Administration is committed to Expanding Access to Paid Leave:
- The President’s 2016 budget will include more than $2 billion in new funds to encourage States to develop paid family and medical leave programs.
- In 2015, the Department of Labor will award $1 million for a grant program to help States, municipalities and federally recognized tribes conduct feasibility studies for paid leave programs. This investment is in addition to the $500,000 in grants the Department’s Women’s Bureau awarded in 2014 to three States and the District of Columbia. The Department of Labor is investing in research and analysis that will help State and local policy makers design the best possible paid leave programs.
Solutions:
- Require employers that already qualify under the federal medical leave act to provide 6 weeks of paid family leave with 60% pay similar to San Francisco
- Prohibit banks from denying mortgages based on whether employees are on FMLA
Wall Street Journal – The Case for Day Care at the Office
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Bloomberg – The 10 U.S. Companies With the Best Paternity Leave Benefits
AEI – A simple proposal to fund maternity leave
Talk Poverty – Why Conservatives’ Plans for Pregnancy 401(k)s Fall Short
Center for American Progress – The Business Case for Paid Leave and Paid Sick Days
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NY Times – Despite Business Fears, Sick-Day Laws Like New York’s Work Well Elsewhere
NY Times – When the Pilot Is a Mom: Accommodating New Motherhood at 30,000 Feet
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Western Union expands maternity leave benefit to 12 weeks fully paid
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The Cut – No Brainer: Paid Leave Equals Breast-feeding Success
San Fransisco Examiner – San Francisco businesses face paid parental leave mandate
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Fortune – Coca-Cola Credits Millennials For Its Extended Paid Parental Leave Policy
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Glamour – Anheuser Busch Is the Latest Company to Offer a (Better) Parental Leave Policy
Star Tribune – Land O’Lakes increases paid parental leave
Philadelphia Business Journal – Campbell’s announces paid parental leave policy
Reuters – Nike expands, adds to its paid family leave
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Think Progress – Footwear Company Gets In On The Paid Family Leave Arms Race
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Rewire – Bleeding Wounds and Breastfeeding Hell: The Costs of No Paid Maternity Leave in America
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Elephant Auto Insurance announces generous parental leave policy
Hitachi Consulting India extends paid maternity leave to 6 months
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Cosmopolitan – 6 Women Reveal the Challenging Reality of Not Having Paid Maternity Leave
Washington Post – Being on paid maternity leave is no grounds for denying a mortgage
Fast Company – Three Dads Share What It Was Like Taking Parental Leave For The First Time
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Fast Company – What Will It Take For Employers To Offer On-Site Day Care?
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Business Insider – The CEO of Patagonia makes a convincing business case for this unorthodox perk
Journal of Business – Parental-leave plans expand for select few
Portland Press Herald – WEX embraces new parental leave policy to attract, keep workers
Girl Scouts of the USA Among Leaders in New-Parent Benefits
Inc – This Company Gives Mothers 12 Weeks (Paid!) Maternity Leave
AXA launches global parental leave policy
Iron Workers 396 apprentice calls new paid maternity leave benefit ‘life-changing’
Harris Corporation Adds Paid Parental Leave for Its 17,000 Employees
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Vanguard adds severance, family benefits
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Tobacco giant Reynolds American adds 16 weeks of paid parental leave
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