“Today, we stand alongside Virginia’s hardworking advocates, workers and families to celebrate another historic and important win in the state, and to express deep gratitude to Governor Abigail Spanberger for signing paid sick and safe leave into law.”
“Today, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) requested White House approval of a proposed rule to stop requiring many employers, contractors, unions, schools and governments to regularly report demographic workforce data to the federal government — data that includes race, sex, and ethnicity of workers across certain categories.”
“Telework can provide clear benefits for workers and employers, yet access to such opportunities is too often uneven and arbitrary,” said Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families and co-lead of The 75 Million.
“This week, the Virginia legislature gave final approval to a comprehensive paid family and medical leave program in the Commonwealth, making Virginia the 15th state, including Washington, D.C., to enact a paid leave law and marking a major step forward for working families in the state.”
“Unlike the newly proposed benefits, FMLA’s primary purpose is job protection, allowing employees to take time off without fear of losing their jobs. Whether pay or short-term disability insurance is offered while eligible employees use FMLA varies by employer. The National Partnership for Women and Families says only about 60% of Ohioans are eligible for FMLA.
“The new bill would promise to deliver a benefit to the 77% of workers, or about 4.5 million people according to the organization, in Ohio who currently are not eligible for paid leave through their employers.
“’The lack of paid leave has devastating costs for Ohioans and their families and for the entire state’s economy by shrinking the workforce and lowering productivity, cutting workers’ incomes and harming public health amid a scarcity of reproductive and maternal health care,’ wrote the organization in February.”
“More than 6 million Black women, or 57% of Black women in the workforce, live in ‘pre-emption states,’ according to a March report from the National Partnership for Women & Families, A Better Balance and the 75 Million. This term describes states where laws on the books don’t mandate paid sick leave and bar local governments from passing their own paid sick day laws.
“‘Instead, [Black women] are being forced to shoulder caregiving and breadwinning responsibilities without the most basic workplace safeguards,’ Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families and co-lead of The 75 Million said in a statement. Pre-emption states are harmful for Black women and harmful overall, because Black women have some of the highest rates of labor force participation in the U.S., Frye said.
“‘Black women are disproportionately suffering from a lack of access to paid sick days, and are often forced to make impossible choices between their health and paycheck as a result,’ she added.”
“The National Partnership for Women & Families is thrilled to congratulate Virginia on passing a paid family and medical leave law, which will provide 3.2 million Virginians with access to paid time off to take care of themselves or their loved ones.”
A new report from the National Partnership for Women & Families reveals that one in three private-sector workers in the U.S. now has access to paid family and medical leave through a state program.
The National Partnership for Women & Families debuted a refresh of AdvancingPaidLeave.org, one of the only websites designed for businesses that want to support working families – and improve work-life balance for employees who are caregivers or have long-term medical needs – through offering paid family and medical leave.
As the nation prepares to mark the anniversary (Feb. 5) of the FMLA, the only federal law guaranteeing workers time off, a new report from the National Partnership for Women & Families shows that state paid leave policies are a triple win for the economy, businesses and families.
To coincide with the FMLA anniversary and continue NPWF’s call for lawmakers to come together on a policy that would help working parents and caregivers balance their work and family demands, the organization released its annual “Paid Leave Means a Stronger Nation” report today. This resource has the latest data on the benefits paid leave would have in every state across the country.
“Jessica Mason, a senior policy analyst with the National Partnership for Women & Families, said the program is a net win for families, especially during uncertain budget times. ‘These days, folks are really watching our dollars, so it’s important to feel like everything we’re making investments in is really worth it — and the evidence is really clear that paid leave is one of those things.'”
Today, leaders from the National Partnership for Women & Families joined Rep. Rosa DeLauro and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand as they introduced the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act, also known as the FAMILY Act, on Capitol Hill.
A first-of-its-kind analysis conducted by the National Partnership for Women & Families found positive trends in three state paid leave programs, showing that over time, access and use of these programs grew as they reached more workers and became more focused on equity and inclusion.
Today, the National Partnership for Women and Families unveiled the top companies setting new standards for paid leave policies in 2025. The 2025 “Leading on Leave” report highlights seven companies that exceeded benchmark qualifications for their policies and practices on paid leave.
“Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families, is featured in the documentary. Caregiving issues, she said, ‘are not niche concerns.’
“‘The vast majority of families navigate these problems every day and it is important for people to see that they are part of a large community of people struggling to figure things out,’ Frye said.”
More than 100 million people do not have paid family leave through their jobs. For far too long, these workers – both women and men –– have had to choose: go to work and continue earning a paycheck to pay bills and keep food on the table – or stay home to care for a sick loved one.
“This latest veto by Governor Youngkin is deeply troubling and disappointing and sends a clear message about his lack of commitment to adopting concrete policies to address the real needs of families across the state. For too many families, the lack of access to caregiving supports like paid family and medical leave means that they must make impossible choices…”
The National Partnership for Women & Families (NPWF) released a new report on the positive impact that comprehensive paid family and medical leave laws have on workers with chronic medical conditions.
“New research from the National Partnership for Women & Families looked at the national and state-level impact of paid leave policies on economic outcomes. About 72% of Ohioans don’t have paid family leave through their employers, amounting to about 4.5 million workers, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.”
