Paid Family & Medical Leave

Paid family and medical leave combats poverty, gives children a healthy start, and lowers the wage gap between women and men by providing structural support to balance work and family.

Know the Facts

Right now only 17% (!) of Americans have access to paid family leave through their employer and fewer than 40% have personal medical leave provided through an employer.
Although the current Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows some employees to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave, it only covers about 60 percent of employees.
A quarter of all poverty spells in the United States are because of having a baby.
The U.S is one of the only countries in the world that doesn't offer paid leave to new mothers.
Paid family leave has been shown to reduce infant mortality by as much as 20% (and the U.S. ranks a low 37th of all countries in infant mortality).
Paid leave improves worker retention, which saves employers money through reduced turnover cost.

What You Can Do

In September 2010, I gave birth to my first child via c-section. I had arranged for 12 weeks of maternity leave at 2/3 pay, using vacation time, sick leave, and taking four weeks unpaid. I worked for a small nonprofit that lacked resources for paid maternity leave. Fortunately my husband's company...Read more

Jennifer

Blog posts

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Families & The Federal Budget Family Economic Security Health Care Immigration Maternal Justice MomsVote

05/17/20

Tell your U.S. Senators: Pass the HEROES Act quickly! Right now is not the time for U.S. Senate to stall-- millions of Americans are faced with both financial and healthcare burdens and require immediate relief.

Diarra Aida Diouf

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Childcare & Early Education Families & The Federal Budget Family Economic Security

05/09/20

As Mother's Day approaches, the MomsRising community is leading the charge for COVID-19 relief for America's struggling families. VOICES: You Can't Reopen The Economy Without Child Care, Huffington Post MomsRising member Cleta Kramer is ready to go back to work; her factory is open. But the lack of...

Kerri Karvetski

Childcare & Early Education Families & The Federal Budget Family Economic Security Food! Health Care Immigration Maternal Justice Paid Family Leave Paid Sick Days Politics & Policy

05/08/20

This Mother’s Day, America’s moms are demanding that lawmakers listen to our concerns and priorities, and address them now.

MomsRising

Childcare & Early Education Families & The Federal Budget Family Economic Security Immigration Paid Family Leave Paid Sick Days

05/02/20

Like most of the nation, this week the MomsRising community was focused on responding to the COVID-19 health crisis. VOICES: Free Migrant Children and Families From Detention Diana Limogi Butterflies Instagram Post.png MomsRising's Diana Limongi made these beautiful butterflies in support of our #...

Kerri Karvetski

Breastfeeding Childcare & Early Education Families & The Federal Budget Family Economic Security Food! Health Care Immigration Maternal Justice MomsRising Paid Family Leave Paid Sick Days Politics & Policy

04/28/20

Editor’s Note: This information is accurate as of today, 4/28/2020. These policies are continuing to evolve at the federal level, as well as at the state levels, and they may change, so please check back here on the MomsRising blog regularly for updated information. All policies addressing this...

MomsRising

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Families & The Federal Budget Family Economic Security Health Care Immigration Paid Family Leave Paid Sick Days

04/28/20

Editor’s Note: This information is accurate as of today, 4/28/2020. These policies are continuing to evolve at the federal level, as well as at the state levels, and they may change, so please check back here on the MomsRising blog regularly for updated information. MomsRising was joined by experts...