MA: Paid Family Leave Moving Forward

State Senate leaders will introduce legislation this week to provide 12 weeks of paid time off at full pay to care for newborn and adopted children or sick family members-- paid for by a weekly payroll tax of $1.50 to $2.50 per week. The proposal is more generous than the only existing paid leave program in the country in California, which provides six weeks of maternity leave at 55% of pay. The Massachusetts proposal has no contribution by employers, so labor leaders are pushing for a more balanced funding mechanism. According to this summary by the National Partnership for Women & Families, 25 other states introduced a range of paid leave bills in 2005.