The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993

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The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993

• Ui100 First-Year Seminar
• Some information taken from The U.S. Department
  of Labor website

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FMLA

• Congress passed the Family Medical Leave Act in
  1993 and it was signed into law by then President
  Bill Clinton

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FMLA

• Congress found that the number of single-parent
  households and two-parent households in which the
  single parent or both parents work had
  significantly increased.

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FMLA

• Congress also believes that it is important for
  the development of children and the family that
  parents be able to participate in childrearing
  and the care of family members who have serious
  health conditions.

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FMLA

• Congress feared that the lack of employment
  policies to accommodate working parents can force
  individuals to choose between job security and
  parenting.

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FMLA

• Congress claimed that the primary responsibility
  for family caretaking often falls on women and
  such responsibility affects the working lives of
  women more than it affects the working lives of
  men.

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FMLA

• Therefore, Congress felt that employment
  standards that apply to one gender only have
  serious potential for encouraging employers to
  discriminate against employees and applicants for
  employment who are of that gender.

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FMLA

• The purpose of the FMLA, according to Congress,
  is
• To balance the demands of the workplace with the
  needs of families
• To promote the stability and economic security of
  families
• To promote national interests in preserving
  family integrity

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FMLA

• To entitle employees to take reasonable leave for
  medical reasons, for the birth or adoption of a
  child, and for the care of a child, spouse, or
  parent who has a serious health condition

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FMLA

• The law allows for an eligible employee to take a
  total of 12 workweeks of leave during any
  12-month period for one or more of the following
• The birth of a child

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FMLA

• Adoption of a child
• To care for the spouse, child or parent of the
  employeeif the spouse, child or parent has a
  serious illness.
• If employee has a serious health condition

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FMLA

• Paid or Unpaid Leave?
• If an employer provides paid leave for fewer than
  12 workweeks, the additional weeks of leave may
  be unpaid.

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FMLA

• Stipulations
• Only applies to people working for companies with
  50 or more employees. (Only 11 of private sector
  companies fall into this category)

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FMLA

• Question for You
• What are some positive aspects of this law?
• What are the negative aspects of this law?
• If you could have been a member of Congress at
  the time this law was being passed, would you
  have voted for it? Why or why not?