Back-to-school time is filled with fresh starts. A new season, new classrooms, and, this year, a new paid family and medical leave program coming to Washington State! MomsRising members came together in 2017 to help pass a best-in-nation paid family and medical leave policy and now implementation of the new program is well underway. But we need your help to be sure all families benefit! That’s right, this is an all hands on deck moment! We all need to speak up to be sure every person knows about the opportunities available to them through Washington’s Paid Family and Medical Leave program.

Sign up to join our Washington State MomsForce for Paid Family and Medical Leave. You'll get the latest and greatest information on Paid Family and Medical Leave and receive tools to take action in your community. ***After you sign up, we’ll mail you a free water bottle to help fuel your advocacy!

Beginning January 2020, Washington’s new Paid Family and Medical Leave program will make it possible for workers to be there for family during times of joy and times of sorrow. Paid Family and Medical Leave will be paid for through a statewide insurance pool that employees and some employers will contribute to beginning January 2019. The average worker will contribute just $2 per week from their paycheck.

This is HUGE and it is in no small part due to moms, dads, and family members like you raising your voices for a strong policy that meets the needs of Washington families. But our work doesn’t stop here! In fact, our work is needed now more than ever to be sure that all Washingtonians, including our own family members, friends, and neighbors, benefit from the new program.

—> Will you join us? MomsRising members across Washington State are organizing in FORCE to take action locally!! Sign up here to join the Washington State MomsForce on Paid Family and Medical Leave!

What does Paid Family and Medical Leave mean for Washington families? Each year, workers will be able to take 12 weeks of paid family leave to bond with a new child after birth, adoption, or foster placement or to care for a seriously ill family member including a spouse, child (including adult children), sibling, grandchild, or grandparent. Workers can also take 12 weeks of paid medical leave to recover from their own serious medical condition.

Workers can combine family and medical leave to receive 16 weeks of paid leave per year, and birth parents who experience pregnancy complications can receive 18 weeks of paid leave per year. Workers will receive a percentage of their wages, with low-income workers receiving 90% of their wages and higher income workers receiving a progressively smaller portion of their wages.

We’ve hit the goal, now we need to hit the books! MomsRising needs your help to shout the good news far and wide, especially in your local community with friends, family, and neighbors, so more people can benefit from this new program.

Let’s ace this one together. Say you'll join State MomsForce for Paid Family and Medical Leave! 

By joining the Washington State MomsForce for Paid Family and Medical Leave, you will be the first to know the latest and greatest information on the program and receive tools to take action in your community. Plus, you’ll help lift families and our economy in this season of momentous change. And the more people who sign on, the more power we will have to make positive change.

P.S. Your voice is powerful! Share your experience of how having - or NOT having - paid family leave has impacted you and your family.

P.P.S. Are you small business owner? Sign up here and we'll send you resources for small business owners.