The best Father’s Day gift? National Paid Family Leave
I’m proud to be a mom with two young sons, and I will always do everything in my power to fight for the rights of women in our country. But today is about dads — and as we celebrate Father’s Day, I want to say clearly that Congress isn’t doing nearly enough to stand up for America’s hardworking fathers either.
Too many men, whether they work in an office, on a factory floor, or at home raising their kids, are forced to make an impossible choice between earning a paycheck and taking care of their families. That’s because we are the world’s only industrialized country that doesn’t guarantee all workers — men or women — some form of paid leave. We have to fix this. The best Father’s Day gift we can give to dads around the country is a national paid leave program, and that’s why Congress should pass my FAMILY Act now. Here’s why:
First, when a new baby comes home, fathers need time to bond with their newborn; they need to be there during those exhausting first few months of a baby’s life; they need to have the opportunity to be dads — but they can only do it if they’re not giving up their income to make it happen. That’s why the FAMILY Act is so important for dads: it lets them stay home with a new child without having to worry about going into financial ruin right when they can least afford it.
Second, paid leave isn’t just about newborns, and a father’s role goes far beyond that crucial first year. A dad might need to care for his sick spouse or elderly parents. He might need to stay with his child while they’re recovering from a medical emergency. Or he might get sick, and if that happens, he’ll need someone to step away from work to stay by his side. The FAMILY Act would ease this enormous source of stress for families, because it would provide paid leave for every major medical event in a dad’s life.
Third, when working dads retire, many of them will end up depending on Social Security to get by from day to day. Some paid leave proposals in Congress are, incredibly, trying to pay for this necessary program by stealing funds from the Social Security. This is a dangerous mistake that would hurt families and punish hardworking dads who spent decades earning their Social Security paychecks. The FAMILY Act wouldn’t touch Social Security — and that should be a nonnegotiable part of any paid leave plan.
Congress needs to get to work and pass the FAMILY Act. My bill would cover every working dad (and mom) in the country, for every major life event, from the birth of a new baby to a serious illness at the end of life. It would only cost as much as one cup of coffee per week. And it would be there for workers whether they’re at a Fortune 500 corporation, a small business, or are self-employed.
This is the bill our families need. The men in our lives work so hard for us, they make extraordinary sacrifices for us, and we owe it to them to finally pass a national paid leave program once and for all. So let’s honor our dads on Father’s Day and every day, and finally turn the FAMILY Act into law.
