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Feb. 6, 2018DES MOINES, Iowa |  By: INS

Leave without pay hurts many Iowa families

On the 25th anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act, advocates for a mandatory, national family leave policy say eight in ten Iowa families face economic insecurity when they need time off work to care for themselves or a family member. Federal law requires that businesses with 50 or more employees allow those who are eligible to take unpaid medical or caregiver leave. Vicki Shabo, with the National Partnership for Women and Families, says that means moms and dads often go back to work much sooner after a birth or adoption because they can't afford unpaid time off.

During his first State of the Union address last week, President Donald Trump called for a paid family leave policy. The US is the only developed nation in the world without one. While current federal law guarantees unpaid leave to some workers, Shabo notes it's inaccessible to 61 percent of Iowa workers – either because their workplaces aren't covered by the law, or they can't afford to take time off without pay. She says that's tough on households in the state, where 77 percent of parents with children have jobs.

In 2002, California became the first state to adopt laws that provide paid family leave benefits to eligible workers. A handful of other states have followed, but Iowa isn't one of them.