A record number of Americans now have access to paid leave for the first time in history, thanks to a steady wave of state-level action that has quietly transformed the landscape of workers’ rights over the past two decades. A new report from the National Partnership for Women and Families found that 14 state paid leave laws now cover approximately 46 million people, representing about a third of all private-sector workers in the country. The United States remains one of only a handful of countries in the world with no federal paid leave policy, meaning workers can take time off after a new baby’s arrival or to seek medical care, but only if they happen to live in the right state. Ten of those 14 laws were passed in just the last decade as public support has grown steadily, and three more are set to take effect this year alone.
What makes the growth especially meaningful is how broadly the coverage has expanded in some states. Colorado now provides an additional 12 weeks of paid leave specifically for parents of newborns in intensive care. Oregon extends paid leave to survivors of domestic violence. Connecticut covers people serving as organ or bone marrow donors. The states with programs have concentrated populations of workers who previously had little access to paid leave, and the numbers reflect that: 55 percent of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander workers are now covered by a state program, as are 41 percent of Latinx workers. Advocates note that workers of color, and especially women of color, are least likely to receive paid leave from private employers, making state programs a meaningful equalizer. If six more states where major campaigns are currently underway pass their own laws, the share of American workers with access to paid leave would rise to 44 percent.
Source: https://reasonstobecheerful.world/more-paid-leave-americans/
