“Only 14 percent of Americans have access to paid family leave. While my husband and I are fortunate enough to be able to get by without my income in the short term, this time off will likely affect our long-term well-being, economic and otherwise,” writes Elissa Strauss.
The legislation offers a progressive financing mechanism that covers close to 100 percent of low-wage workers’ income, meaning workers will no longer be forced to choose between a paycheck and their family.
“A big reason why I went to work for Starbucks seven years ago was because of their inclusiveness of the LGBTQ communities … That’s why I was so surprised to learn that the paid leave offered to partners (the moniker for store employees) does not extend to fathers or adoptive parents,” writes Niko Walker.
In a LinkedIn announcement, Microsoft’s Chief People Officer, Kathleen Hogan, wrote that the company is effecting a new global benefit for their employees: family caregiver leave.
Ivanka Trump and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) are teaming up for a private forum with members of Congress on “pro-family tax reform initiatives.”
MacKenzie Nicholson was pregnant with her second baby when she found out her mother had a brain tumor. She was forced to take time off to care for her, which cut into the vacation and sick time she was saving to supplement the three weeks of paid maternity her company offers.
[W]e found that about 77% of them, more than three-quarters of small business owners in Connecticut, support the paid family leave legislation,” said Brittany Stalsburg who’s with [the research firm] BLS.
Most people who need time off from work won’t be covered. Meanwhile, the plan’s reliance on the unemployment insurance system almost certainly dooms it to fail — meaning very few parents would even get paid leave anyway.
In a speech on gender inequality at Brown University, Yellen praised workplace policies such as paid family leave and tax-relief for child and elder care. She said such policies increase women’s numbers in the workforce and raise productivity, which boosts the economy.
Paid family leave is proven to reduce stress, increase child survival rates, improve chances of successful breastfeeding, and give mothers time to physically recover after having a baby. Yet, America is the only developed country in the world without a national policy, forcing many women to return to work before they are ready.
According to industry sources, beginning this year, members of the Iron Workers union will be given six months of paid maternity leave. This female ironworkers’ paid maternity leave policy is an important win for women in the workforce, especially since this is occurring in such a male-dominated industry.
In 2015, tech giants Netflix, Microsoft and Amazon all announced paid family leave programs for their employees. Many speculated that this would start a paid leave arms race among top employers. It didn’t… the move was more flash in the pan than watershed.
The online poll, conducted by Lake Research Partners on behalf of Small Business Majority and the Center for American Progress, found that a vast 7 in 10 owners and operators of small businesses support the recently reintroduced Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act.
But paid family leave isn’t just critical for public health, it’s also critical for a healthy economy. Paid family leave increases labor-force participation for both men and women, encouraging parents to stay in the workforce after they have a child or when they need time away to care for a loved one.
The trend of maternity crowdfunding is pointing to a need for better federal paid maternity leave policies that help women take the necessary time they need when they have a child,” Sara Margulis, CEO of Honeyfund.com, said. Debra L. Ness, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families, agrees. “This is evidence of our failure as a nation to adopt policies that provide the basic supports that all workers need at some point in their lives and nearly every other country provides.
I think we can all agree that becoming a caregiver, whether to a new baby or a family member, is a huge undertaking. As an executive business leader of a highly successful tech company, and mother to four, I know what it’s like to make decisions about time management, finances, and spending time with your family. It’s not easy.
About 8 of 10 workers who took leave and received either no or a portion of their pay said they had to cut back on spending to make ends meet…[a]cross all incomes, almost 2 out of 10 leave-takers went on public assistance. Low-income workers feel the most pain when it comes to figuring out how to pay for leave…[a]lmost half delayed paying their bills and went on public assistance.
Juliana Horowitz, associate director of research for Pew… said it wasn’t hard to find agreement that paid family leave is a positive thing. “Americans think the overall impact on families and individuals and the economy would be mostly positive. The disagreement really comes on how to provide it, who should provide it and who should be eligible for it.”
Heitkamp believes [the FAMILY Act] will benefit… small business owners who sometimes struggle to provide paid family leave to their employees… Linda Steve, a semi-retired certified public accountant, said… “This is not a gender-specific issue, this is a person issue…[whether it’s] the birth of the child or the health condition of a parent or a child or a spouse, [having paid leave] makes them a much better employee.”
The key lesson from the states that have taken the bold step of implementing paid family leave is that the evidence is clear: paid leave is a good thing not just for families, but also for businesses and the economy as a whole. Building on existing social insurance systems has worked well for the states, and represents a promising model for expanding access to paid leave to all Americans.
