Paternity Leave

685 Words3 Pages
Issue: I am going to address the problems associated with lack of paternity leave available to fathers in the United States. Not only are males in the work force affected by the lack of paternity leave, but also their child(ren) and the mother(s) of their child(ren). These fathers are typically facing economic and social barriers that keep them from wanting/being able to take long paternity leaves. There is a stigma in the United States about fathers who take a long paternity leave, but there should not be. • In 2012, there were 2 million fathers in the United States who were stay at home dads (www.dol.gov) • According to the Department of Labor, in 2012, 9 out of 10 fathers did take some time out of work for the birth or adoption of a…show more content…
o However, 70% of fathers take 10 days or less (www.dol.gov) o Only 13% of the fathers who took paternity leave were paid- compared to 21% of women (www.dol.gov) • There are very few states who provide equal paid parental leave to both fathers and mothers (www.dol.gov) • Employers are less likely to offer paternity leave than maternity leave, and the employees may not always take the offered leave, or at least not all of it (www.dol.gov) • Some major tech firms in the United States are offering 6 to 17 weeks of paid paternity leave (www.dol.gov) • Less than half of the countries that offer paid maternity leave (nearly all countries) offer paid paternity leave (www.dol.gov) o According to the International Labor Organization, only 79 out of 167 countries have existing legislation that provides paternity leave (www.iol.org) o Internationally, it has been found that when fathers take their leave, women (mothers) in the workforce experience increased employment and pay…show more content…
Any employee who has worked for an employer for at least one year who employs more than fifty people is eligible for FMLA. Under FMLA, both men and woman are permitted to take up to 12 weeks per year of unpaid leave. These twelve weeks may be taken at once or split into several blocks of time. Due to FMLA’s restrictions, only about 58% of employees in private firms are eligible. However, 80% of working parents aged 18 to 54 reported having access to some paid leave. In 2004, California became the first state to put a comprehensive paid family leave law into place. Fathers, and mothers, were both offered six weeks of partially paid leave following childbirth or adoption. This is funded by employee-paid payroll taxes. In Rhode Island, the Temporary Caregiver Insurance Program was designed in 2014 and allows for four weeks of paid leave for childbirth or adoption. This is funded by employee payroll taxes. In addition, the Rhode Island Parental and Family Medical Leave Act states that employees are entitled to thirteen consecutive weeks of paternal leave. In New Jersey, parents are given up to six weeks of leave with two thirds of prior wages. This is funded by employee payroll deductions. Washington, Minnesota, Montana, and New Mexico also have paternity leave policies. Several other states are currently working on paid family leave
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