20th Year Anniversary of FMLA

2O years ago this week, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was enacted. On Wednesday, February 6, 2013 CNN Opinion published an opinion article titled "Extended Family Leave to All Workers". Janet Walsh, editor of the article shares her opinion regarding this act. “The FMLA has been used more than 100 million times by women and men to care for parents, children and spouses with serious illnesses, to bond with new children and to manage their own serious health conditions” (Walsh).

According to the FMLA’s “Employee Rights and Responsibilities Under the Family and Medical Leave Act,” FMLA requires covered employers to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave to eligible employees for the following reasons:

• for incapacity due to pregnancy, prenatal medical care or child birth;

• to care for the employee’s child after birth, or placement for adoption or foster care;


• to care for the employee’s spouse, son, daughter or parent, who has a serious health

condition; or


• for a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the employee’s job.

(Family and Medical Leave Act)

Only 12% of the works force is granted paid family leave by their employers (Walsh). Since the law only guarantees only unpaid leave many workers find themselves choosing between a paycheck or their family’s well being (Walsh).  More and more women are in the labor force compared to past years. It’s great that women have a lot more opportunities now than ever, but unfortunately for the majority work is not an option, it’s a must. With the growing number of single mothers, there are thousands of babies whose mother’s return to work as early as two or three weeks after giving birth. In most of these cases mothers have no other option because they cannot afford to take anymore “maternal leave”. “A 2010 study found that the United States could prevent nearly 900 infant deaths and save $13 billion per year if 90% of mothers breastfed exclusively for six months (Walsh). But only 47% of U.S. babies are breastfed at all at 6 months, and only 16 percent exclusively (Walsh).

Studies have also shown that paid family leaves increases productivity because workers will be more emotionally and mentally stable. It is important for both employers and employees to know of the benefits companies can obtain along with the rights employees can demand if their company is elegible to provide the benefits of this act. I currently do not work, but as I think of the future I really do hope this act can be a bit more open to a greater amount of the workforce. Of course our economy is based on many more aspects than this one single act, but as small as it may seem, I believe “content” workers can be more productive making their work really pay off.

Works Cited

Walsh, Janet. "Extend Family Leave to All Workers." CNN-Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, 6 Feb. 2013.

     

     Web. 8 Feb. 2013. <http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/06/opinion/walsh-family-leave/index.html?iid=article_sidebar>.

Family and Medical Leave Act. 28 USC. United States Department of Labor. Web. 8 Feb. 2013.

     <http://www.dol.gov/WHD/fmla/index.htm>.