Debate over paid family leave falls along stark party lines – By Jessie Bur (Federal Times) / June 25 2021
A June 24 House hearing on legislation to expand paid family leave for federal employees revealed stark opinion differences among members of Congress over whether federal employees are over- or under-compensated.
The proposed legislation would grant federal employees 12 weeks of family and medical leave when they need to care for themselves or a loved one or manage military deployments, expanding upon the 12 weeks of paid parental leave granted to such employees beginning in October last year.
“We need to build on this historic achievement by bringing the federal government’s employment policies in line with leading companies in the private sector — and, indeed, with the rest of the world,” Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said at the Oversight and Reform Committee hearing. She introduced the bill.
“This bill would finally provide federal employees with comprehensive paid family and medical leave. That means employees would have access to paid leave if they get sick, need to care for an ill family member, or need to miss work due to a family member’s military deployment. The Family and Medical Leave Act guarantees unpaid leave for these reasons, but unpaid leave is untenable for too many federal workers.”
