Only 4 States Have Paid Family Leave. Does Yours? (And What You Can Do if It Doesn’t)
As of January 1st, 2018 paid leave became a reality in New York State. The state joins California, Rhode Island and New Jersey – representing only 8 percent of the United States.
I know, this is incredible. Most people do not realize this until they are about to become parents.
Get ready for your mind to be blown again because….
The United States has the distinct honor (#sarcasm) to be the only industrialized nation to not offer any paid leave as national law. Despite the rhetoric, lawmakers are NOT pro-family. It seems that babies are only deserving of their attention if they are in utero, all bets are off when they are born. But I digress… Let’s talk about paid leave (or the lack thereof).
If you live in one of the four states that offers paid leave to its residents, CONGRATULATIONS!
If you live in one of the 46 states that do not offer any paint leave to its families, it’s time to get to work!
READ RELATED: NO PAID LEAVE IN THE USA? THE REST OF THE WORLD REACTS (IN GIFS)
What can you do if your state doesn’t offer paid leave?
Be informed!
Some great places to follow on paid leave news are:
Join the Family Values at Work Coalition in your state! The coalition has chapters in 27 states, working to make medical and family leave a reality:
Arizona | California | Colorado | Connecticut | Florida | Georgia | Hawaii| | Illinois | Maine | Maryland | Massachusetts | Michigan | Minnesota | Montana | New Jersey | New Mexico | Nevada| New York | North Carolina| Oregon | Pennsylvania | Rhode Island | Texas | Vermont | Washington | Washington, D.C. | Wisconsin |
Support the FAMILY ACT.
The Family Act would make paid family leave the law of the land. The Family Act was introduced by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from NY. The bill has 28 cosponsors. Sadly, none of them are Republicans (so much for family values). You can read more about the status of the bill here.
Call your representatives.
To date, no Republican senator supports the Family Act. If your Senator is one of them, make sure to call and express your discontent.
Remember, don’t be intimidated about calling your senators, after all, they work for taxpayers (YOU!)
Here is the contact info for all senators.
Here is the number to the Capitol Switchboard: An actual operator (!!!) will direct your call.
OK, Now… very important….
That’s all for now, we must keep talking about this until parents in all 50 states have access to paid leave!
Tags :
paid family leave
