Christina Coleman objectively explains how the Family Medical Leave Act can benefit families in these two clips. She clearly explains what employers are required to provide to their employees. However Coleman goes on to explain that not all employers are subject to the FMLA and even if they are not all employees are qualified for those benefits. Several factors stick out when listening to Coleman’s description of the FMLA’s legal aspects. First, it seems as thought its quite difficult to qualify for these leave benefits. Second, these paternity leave and maternity leave are unpaid. Third the Family Medical Leave does not provide flexible work schedules that are necessary to raise a family once parents return to work. And interestingly enough, paternity leave and maternity leave laws are written very differently which makes troublesome implications about how employers see mothers differently from fathers. Coleman’s clear explanation of the FMLA and how many families use FMLA benefits helps point to many reasons why the FMLA is not enough.
As Coleman mentioned not everyone is covered under the FMLA. According to 2003 and 2001 data only 60% of employers are subject to the FMLA. However not all employees work enough hours and thus only 46% of the workforce qualifies for FMLA benefits (Palley 1161). Where does that leave parents who are not covered under the FMLA? And what about single parents? If a parent has a child who is too young to enroll in public school they must risk placing there child in “unsafe situations” if they can not afford daycare. Children of low-income families who have the chance to attend a good quality head start program have a lower chance of being incarcerated as adults than children who do not (Palley 1162). Good quality childcare is crucial for families and our society. One of the most debilitating features of the FMLA is that it does extend to low-income families who are truly in need.
Even if a child’s parents are covered by the FMLA, both mom and dad may not be able to afford to take an unpaid leave. Because maternal and paternal leave are unpaid in order for one or both parents to take leave there must be other forms of income; either savings or one of the parents income if they continue working. Even if one or both parents qualify, neither may be able to afford to take an unpaid leave in order to make ends meet. What then? Early childcare is costly; in 2011 the average annual cost of full time childcare for infants to four year olds ranged from $3,900 to $11,700 annually. Because the FMLA does not give employees a paid leave it has done little for low-income families.
Also there are women who must choose not to take the leave even if they qualify. Some fear that taking an extended leave could mean consequences for their status at work. At the end of their leave a women could go back to work only to find that her chances of advancement have diminished or that her. Women who experience little repercussion in the workplace at the end of their leave are those who have “power in the employment relationship to do so” (Palley 1162). However even if a woman can take maternity leave because she can afford to and has leverage in the workplace, she still may opt-out of work. Employers are not required to help mothers excel in the workplace by for instance giving them flexible work hours. Employers who do accommodate mothers have more women who have advanced in their career. For instance in Lisa Belkin mentions that “Deloitte & Touche has more than doubled the number on flexible work schedules over the past decade and more than quintupled the number of female partners and directors” (15). The FMLA’s aid to families who qualify is incredibly limited in helping women in the workplace.
The Family Medical Leave act not also neglects most mothers but also does little to help men balance their family lives and careers. The FMLA classifies maternity leave as a disability leave where it is medically necessary for the mother to take time off of work. This is because the woman is usually presumed disabled towards the end of her pregnancy and immediately after she gives birth. However the father is not. It seems obvious that a father would be needed at to help care for mother and child during this time. However employers may view a father taking an extended leave as an unnecessary choice. In Dilemmas of Involved Fatherhood Kathleen Gerson explains how employers feel about fathers taking paternity leave “…paternal leaves are rarely considered a legitimate option for men even if they formally exist. Involved fathers wished to take time off for parenting, but like most men they were reluctant to do so for fear of imperiling their careers”(326). There is no universal parental leave program that mandates employers give parents benefits, based on the simple principle that both mothers and fathers need adequate time with their children.
-Corinne Mann
Elizabeth, Palley, and Shdaimah Corey. "Child Care Policy: A Need For Greater Advocacy." Children And Youth Services Review33.(n.d.): 1159-1165. ScienceDirect. Web. 25 Apr. 2013.
http://www.naccrra.org/sites/default/files/default_site_pages/2012/cost_report_2012_final_081012_0.pdf
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