Picture this: it is almost your wife’s due date and you need to take paternity leave, or your elderly father has a bad fall and requires long-term treatment. Unforeseeable events like those can occur to any worker, and he or she may need to take time off to attend to their family as a result.
For the past 25 years, the Family and Medical Leave Act has allowed qualified workers to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to care for themselves or their loved ones, while the employer guarantees the employee with get the same or equivalent job upon return. Over the years there have been a few minor amendments approved, but the statute has relatively remained the same.
However, the recently proposed Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act would allow for 12 weeks of paid leave for workers dealing with serious medical conditions of their own, medical conditions of a family member, or the birth or adoption of a child. This act would cover all workers, and they would be compensated 66 percent of their monthly wage during periods of leave, up to $1000.
It is a long and tedious process to get federal laws approved, so it may be some time until the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act can be put into effect. It is also important to consider that fact that many workers are hesitant about taking family and medical leaves because they fear losing the income while they away from work.
Hopefully, though, the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act would reassure workers that their health and the health of their family is as important as their job, and that they should not need to dread the loss of income. To read more about Tom Spiggle of the Spiggle Law Firm’s take on this Act, click here to go to his LinkedIn article on the subject.
