Family and Medical Leave Act FMLA

The Family and Medical Leave Act was the first bill President Bill Clinton signed, on February 5, 1993, after two earlier versions were vetoed by President George H. W. Bush. It lets eligible employees take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave a year for the birth or adoption of a child, their own serious health condition, or to care for a spouse, child, or parent with a serious condition, and return to the same or an equivalent job with health coverage kept in place.

It covers employers with 50 or more employees within 75 miles, along with all public agencies and schools, and workers must have worked there for a year and at least 1,250 hours. As a result only a little more than half of workers are eligible. Laws added in 2008 and 2009 provide up to 26 weeks of leave to care for a seriously injured service member and leave for military family needs. The Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division enforces it.

The United States is the only wealthy country without a national paid leave program. Thirteen states and D.C. have created paid family and medical leave programs, usually funded by payroll taxes, and a 2019 law gave federal workers 12 weeks of paid parental leave. Proposals in Congress range from a national paid leave program to tax credits for employers that offer paid leave, with disagreement over cost and mandates on businesses.