The California Legislature on Thursday voted to expand paid sick leave for about 10.4 million workers, sending a bill to Gov. Gavin Newsom that mandates up to two weeks of paid time off for circumstances including COVID-19 symptoms or scheduling a vaccine.
Software company Atlassian Inc., Salesforce.com Inc., Spotify Technology and brands by Lady Gaga, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Garner and Kristen Bell are among the companies endorsing the letter spearheaded by nonprofit. Many large corporations already provide paid time off to new parents. “It’s about seeing this expanded to other companies” that can’t afford it, said David Hanrahan, chief human resources officer at Eventbrite.“With an equal paid leave policy in place, we can help stem the historic tide of women leaving the workforce and ensure that low-wage earners and people of color have the time they need to care for themselves and their families,” the letter says.during the COVID-19 pandemic, in part because of a lack of child care and the demands of home-schooling.
The United States is an outlier among developed nations in not providing paid time off for new parents, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Democrats and Republicans have drafted various leave proposals, but the parties disagree on size, scope and funding. Fifteen states — including California — and Washington, D.C., have passed laws requiring employers to offer paid time off. Still, only 17% of employees had access to paid leave through their employers in 2018, according to the
so 190 companies want paid family leave, why don't THEY give their employees paid family leave?
If they want to get this or anything else done, these companies should be urging the Senate to abolish the filibuster.