Dive Brief:
- In letters to lawmakers and the president, a group of CEOs urged prompt action on federal laws that would make paid family leave available to most American workers.
- Such legislation would help businesses "challenged by the growing patchwork of competing and inconsistent state plans" and benefit employees, the Business Roundtable wrote.
- The business advocacy organization offered several suggestions, including: that the measure follow the requirements set by the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), give employers flexibility in managing paid family and medical leave benefits and allow employers that are self-financing their plans to maintain them so long as they meet minimum requirements.
Dive Insight:
Paid leave for federal employees appears to be on the way. The U.S. House of Representatives approved a defense bill Dec. 11 that includes 12 weeks of paid family leave for federal workers in exchange for the creation of the Space Force, a new branch of the U.S. military operating under the Air Force. The Senate passed the bill this week and President Donald Trump has said via Twitter that said he will sign it.
Trump is also on the record as supporting a nationwide paid family leave plan. He called for national paid leave in his State of the Union speech earlier this year and featured such leave in campaign promises and his fiscal year 2019 budget proposal.
The patchwork of leave laws is certainly a reality, particularly as states like Maine begin to implement "paid leave for any purpose" laws that can further complicate the leave picture. In response, stakeholders have backed various proposals that purport to streamline requirements.
