American Families Plan proposes national paid employment leave program

The Biden administration recently unveiled its American Families Plan (AFP), an initiative focused on supporting children and families that includes making investments in education, extending tax cuts to lower- and middle-income workers, and making childcare more affordable. It also contains a proposal to create a national paid family and medical leave program.

Where new measure would fit in

Currently, the only federal law governing family and medical leave (e.g., leave to care for a new child or a seriously ill family member or to recover from a serious health condition) is the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), whose leave time is unpaid. Some states, though, have implemented their own laws to offer more than what the FMLA requires, including providing paid leave for the above types of situations.

During the pandemic, the government implemented temporary paid leave for COVID-19-related reasons, including requiring certain employers to provide paid emergency FMLA leave for employees who needed to be absent from work to take care of children whose schools or daycare facilities were closed because of the coronavirus.

In announcing the AFP, the White House stated the pandemic highlighted and exacerbated the need for paid family and medical leave on a permanent basis. The majority of workers in the United States lack access to any paid leave.

What would be covered

President Joe Biden has proposed the national comprehensive paid family and medical leave program to ensure workers receive partial wage replacement for: