Paid Family Leave: Foundation for a Healthy Society
The United States is the only industrialized country that doesn’t guarantee its citizens paid family leave. Eighty-five percent of American voters say they support paid family leave. That support seems to cross party lines. Perry Undem and Bellwether Research & Consulting conducted a survey of 1,004 registered voters, and found that 94 percent of Democrats, 83 percent of Independents and 74 percent of Republicans support paid family leave. This includes voters of all ages, races and income levels.
Even in Washington, D.C., both Democrat and Republican leaders recently expressed support for some form of a paid family leave program at the federal level. “We are seeking to build consensus around policy that can garner enough votes to be passed into law,” Senior White House advisor Ivanka Trump said.
Experts agree that parents need time to recover from the physical and emotional challenges of giving birth, and bringing an infant home. One in nine women suffer from postpartum depression in the U.S. These women need even more time to recover for themselves, for their families and for their newborn, but it’s essential for all new mothers and fathers to have time to bond and to rest. “I would love to have more than 16 weeks off,” working mother Jackie Valdez said. “Going back to work was difficult.”
Paid family leave is good for businesses, too. “There is a lot of evidence that indicates that employees, when they go back to work after having paid maternity leave, are more committed to the organization,” David Nazarian College of Business and Economics Professor Sigalit Ronen said. “They are more satisfied; they engage more frequently with the citizenship behavior.” Ronen said paid family leave is a good investment for businesses, as it gets fully returned when employees come back with motivation and satisfaction.
“There is probably a long term effect to measure and capture,” David Nazarian College of Business and Economics Professors Daniel Degravel said. Having strong families may strengthen the social fabric and economic health of a society, and ultimately decrease crime.
The odds of Americans getting paid family leave have never been better. California, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island have recently passed laws. California is extending paid family leave to 18 weeks, the most generous policy in the country, but it’s still far less than in many countries in the world.
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