Stand Up & Be Counted

About the FMLA

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) guarantees eligible workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave each year to care for a newborn or newly adopted child, seriously ill family member, or to recover from their own serious health condition. Both workers and businesses promote the overwhelming need for the law and report that, overall, it has been a major success.

Unfortunately, the FMLA is not enough. The law does not cover people in workplaces with fewer than 50 employees, and does not cover part-time workers or those who have been employed for less than a year. In fact, two in five private sector workers are not covered by the FMLA.

Even more troubling is the fact that the FMLA provides only unpaid leave. For millions of working people, the FMLA is not a real option, even though they may desperately need time away from work—because they can’t afford to miss a paycheck.

The National Partnership and its allies are working to address the serious need for better laws to serve our working families. We advocate for paid family and medical leave, and for expanding the scope of the FMLA to protect the jobs of working families when they need it most. The time has come for Congress to take the next step—and bring our work/family policies in sync with the realities facing today’s working families.

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>>Other FMLA Stories
>>Note from Debra Ness 
>>Message from Senator Dodd
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