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Statement

Virginia Will Become Stronger, Healthier by Adopting Paid Leave. What a Difference an Election Makes!

March 17, 2026
Paid Sick Days, Paid Family & Medical Leave

Lisa Lederer, 202/371-1996

Statement from leaders of MomsRising, the online and on-the-ground organization of more than one million mothers and their families, on the Virginia state legislature passing a paid family and medical leave/earned sick days law:

“Virginia will be stronger, healthier, and more successful when Governor Abigail Spanberger signs into law the paid family and medical leave and earned sick days bills the state legislature passed last Friday, allowing 3.2 million of the state’s working people access to paid time off to recover from serious illness or injury or to care for a seriously ill family member. Her election is making enactment of these essential laws possible; former Gov. Glenn Youngkin had callously vetoed them. What a difference an election makes!

“Virginia will now become the 14th state, plus the District of Columbia, to guarantee paid family and medical leave and the first southern state to adopt a comprehensive leave policy covering the vast majority of workers. The new Virginia law will cover public and private sector workers, providing paid medical, parental and caregiving leave; safe leave for people facing domestic or sexual violence, stalking or harassment; and leave to manage a military deployment. It will cover part- as well as full-time workers and includes an expansive definition of family that reflects life in the United States today. In doing so, it will help millions of people cope with the affordability crisis President Trump’s tariffs and other actions have created. It will be a tremendous boost to Virginia.”

-Statement of Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director, MomsRising

“Moving forward, working families across Virginia will be able to take time off work to recover, or to care for the people they love, without losing a paycheck or their job. This will boost Virginia’s economy, allow moms and other caregivers to stay in the workforce, ease labor shortages, lower costs for families and businesses, and improve the economic security of families. Every day the state has been without this law has been a day when moms were forced back to their jobs days or weeks after giving birth; seriously ill workers couldn’t take time to recover; children fighting cancer were without their moms and dads; seniors with life-threatening illnesses were without their loved ones; and businesses incurred expenses to replace the skilled, valued employees they lost.

“MomsRising members in the state pressed hard for passage of this legislation. We thank our partners, including the Paid Leave for All Virginians coalition, Freedom Virginia, Voices for Virginia's Children, and Virginia Interfaith for their work in making this victory possible. Families, businesses, the state’s public health, and its economy will be much better off when these laws take effect.”

-Statement of Ruth Martin, Senior Vice President and Chief Workplace Justice Officer, MomsRising

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MomsRising.org is an on-the-ground and online grassroots organization of more than a million people who are working to increase family economic security, stop discrimination against women and moms, and build a nation where businesses and families can thrive. Established in 2006, MomsRising and its members are organizing and speaking out to improve public policy and to change the national dialogue on issues that are critically important to America’s families, including criminal justice reform, immigration policy reform, and gun safety. MomsRising is working for paid family and medical leave, affordable, high quality childcare and early learning, and for an end to the wage and hiring discrimination which penalizes women — particularly moms and women of color — and so many others. MomsRising advocates for access to healthy food for all kids, health care for all, earned sick days, and breastfeeding rights so that all children can have a healthy start. MomsRising maintains a Spanish language website: www.MamásConPoder.org. Sign up online at www.MomsRising.org — and follow us on our blog, and on Twitter and Facebook.