Paid leave in WA! by Marilyn Watkins

Posted 10 May, 2007 in Uncategorized

On May 8, 2007, Washington became the second state in the nation to adopt paid family leave for all new parents, when Governor Christine Gregoire signed SB 5659 into law. A coalition of over 50 organizations and businesses succeeded in moving this bill through the legislative process, despite powerful opposition from entrenched lobbyists. We are thrilled that our state has taken this historic first step. We hope our victory helps other states move forward, too.Washington’s paid family leave program will guarantee up to 5 weeks paid time off to parents taking leave from work to care for a newborn or newly adopted child beginning in October, 2009. Benefits will start at $250 per week, pro-rated for part-time workers. Everyone who has worked at least 680 hours in the previous year will be eligible, regardless of firm size. Workers in companies with more than 25 employees who have been with that employer a full year will also have job protection.

As originally introduced, the bill also included leave for the serious health condition of the worker or a close family member. The full program would have been funded by a 2 cent per hour payroll tax, paid by workers. However, the legislature removed leave for a serious health condition, and also created a taskforce to recommend a funding mechanism for the program before the legislature convenes again in 2008.

Washington’s new paid family leave program will assure that every child born in our state gets the best possible start in life. Paid family leave is a key part of our state’s commitment to health and educational success for all our children, and to the kind of economic growth that leads to broadly shared prosperity.

Paid family leave is the best kind of Mother’s Day present for 21^st century parents. Literally thousands of parents and grandparents across Washington sent emails, photos, and cookies to their legislators, urging them to support the paid family leave bill. For me personally, the bill signing on May 8^th was particularly poignant, coming on the 22^nd anniversary of the day I became a mother.

More information about the new program and the history of the bill’s enactment is available at www.eoionline.org.

4 comments to “Paid leave in WA! by Marilyn Watkins”

Robert Drago, May 11th, 2007 at 10:45 am:

I’m excited about paid leave in Washington state, but it is pretty watered down compared to California’s system. WA pays up to $250 a week, but CA pays up to $840. In case you’re wondering, $250 a week for 52 weeks would put a family of two (say, a mom and child) below the federal poverty line. And CA covers own illnesses, while WA only covers new children. Worse yet, I doubt the system will be improved any time soon. The Family and Medical Leave Act was signed into law in 1993, with folks thinking they’d ‘come back’ for the paid part next (see Wisensale); and for those shy on arithematic, that was 14 years ago…

Of course, I think the legislation represents movement in the right direction, signaling other states and the federal government that paid leave isn’t just a progressive pipe-dream, and that the general public does not want government policies that are solely designed to help Wall Street. That is very positive, and my sincere congrats and thanks to the folks like Marilyn who made this happen!

Anna Haley-Lock, May 11th, 2007 at 6:40 pm:

As are so many bills that attempt to enhance supports for the earning-caring balance, the WA process was arduous. (I am a faculty member at University of Washington who conducts work-life related organizational research in nonprofit and forprofit settings, and happen to sit on the EOI board.) Incremental policy-making is frought with the dangers that Bob notes above, so while I won’t challenge those points, I’ll nonetheless express some optimism for future progress here. Advocates “softened” the “policy stream” through a trial run last year in the legislature; if you listen to State Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson (sponsor of the House bill), progressive lawmakers will soon be back for more. We’ll see, of course. But in the mean time, Washington’s residents can start reframing (and appreciating) paid family leave as a proper function of government — added to the provision of the nation’s highest (and inflation-adjusting) minimum wage. A work, on work, in progress…. [The listed website features a photo of Marilyn Watkins, a true leader in this effort, and Governor Gregoire post-bill signing.]

tovorinok, July 4th, 2007 at 11:11 pm: