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More on the Fight to Save Family and Medical Leave |
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Last week, we got the word out here at Working America that Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) regulations are under review by the Bush administration’s Department of Labor. We received thousands of stories about the importance of balancing work and family life.
The FMLA allows employees to balance their work and family life by taking up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year to care for themselves or their loved ones in the times they need help most. If you want to add your own thoughts on why the FMLA is important to you, there’s still time. Click here to tell your story.
While Bush tries to toy with the FMLA rules, Harvard and McGill universities released a new study that concludes the United States lags far behind virtually all wealthy countries with regard to family-oriented workplace policies such as maternity leave, paid sick days and support for breast-feeding. As the Associated Press reports, the study says:
Workplace policies for families in the United States are weaker than those of all high-income countries and many middle- and low-income countries. Notably, it says the U.S. is one of only five countries out of 173 in the survey that does not guarantee some form of paid maternity leave; the others are Lesotho, Liberia, Swaziland and Papua New Guinea.
Working America members are writing to tell us why our nation’s unpaid family and medical leave is critical for them and their families.
Georgiann in Pennsylvania writes:
I did not have to use it yet, but I am part of the “sandwich generation” with a small child at home and an elderly mother-in-law living with us. It’s almost inevitable that somewhere down the road I will need it, and I hope it will still be there. This is crucial for working families to have this benefit.
Donna Jean in Alabama says:
My mother is 76 years old and in declining health. I will need time off to care for her in the upcoming years. I’m 55 years old, and I can’t afford to lose my job.
From Missouri, Helena states:
Thank God for FMLA. Because of it, I was able to stay home with my baby during those first crucial weeks of her life.
Working America also conducted a short survey among our members to learn more about what makes the FMLA work best for working families. Some of the surprising results:
- 41 percent of respondents say they have requested time off under the FMLA in the past.
- 46 percent of respondents had never been informed of their FMLA rights by their employer.
- Over one-quarter (27 percent) say their employer forced them to use paid accrued vacation or sick leave in lieu of unpaid FMLA leave.
- 39 percent of respondents say they are between the ages of 50 and 64.
- Almost two-thirds of respondents (65 percent) say they are female.
We also asked Working America members whether they agree or disagree with the following statement: “Employers should be required to give full-time workers at least seven days of paid sick leave annually.” A whopping 97 percent of respondents said they agreed with this statement.
There’s still time to submit your comments on why the FMLA is important to you. Click here to submit your comments. Here at Working America, we’re keeping a close eye on this situation. We’ll keep you posted on the fight to save family and medical leave—and the fight to make it better.
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