(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Today, Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08) applauded the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act's (NDAA) inclusion of a bipartisan amendment providing 12 weeks of paid family medical leave to federal workers to care for themselves and their families. The amendment reflects language in H.R. 1534, the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act (FEPLA). Rep. Raskin cosponsored the amendment and the legislation, which were originally introduced and championed by Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (NY-12). 

“The federal government is our nation’s largest employer with more than 2.1 million employees all across the country. The federal government can and should be a model employer for the private sector in this area. Now, with the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act as part of the NDAA we can make that happen,” said Rep. Maloney. “When I was pregnant with my first child and asked about the leave policy, the response I got was, ‘Leave? What leave? Women just leave.’ That’s not acceptable. This isn’t a Republican or Democratic issue – this is a family issue.”

The provision would guarantee 12 weeks of paid leave:

• Because of the birth of an employee’s child and in order to care for such child.
• Because of the placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care.
• In order to care for the spouse, child, or parent of the employee, if such spouse, child, or parent has a serious health condition.
• Because of a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of the employee’s position.
• Because of any qualifying urgent need arising from the fact that the employee’s spouse, child, or parent is on covered active duty (or has been notified of an impending call or order to covered active duty) in the Armed Forces.

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