Family Leave legislation pending in Congress: new bill would expand the Family Medical Leave Act by mandating paid leave for employees.Pending legislation could expand the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA FMLA Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 FMLA Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance ) to provide paid leave to employees. Sens Sens (săNs), town (1990 pop. 27,755), Yonne dept., N central France, on the Yonne River. Leather tanning and the manufacture of safes, electrical equipment, gears, and pharmaceuticals are the chief industries. . Christopher Dodd  This article or section contains information about one or more candidates in an upcoming or ongoing election.Content may change as the election approaches. (D-Conn.) and Ted Stevens (R-Ark.) introduced legislation in June that would provide up to eight weeks of paid leave to workers needing time off due to the birth or adoption of a child, or to care for a child, spouse spouse A legal marriage partner as defined by state law or parent with a serious illness or their own serious illness. Metalcasting industry lobbyists believe that metalcasting facility owners responsibly address employee needs and benefits without interference from the federal government in workplace operations. In addition, they argue that this bill will increase administrative and personnel costs, which in turn would necessitate ne·ces·si·tate tr.v. ne·ces·si·tat·ed, ne·ces·si·tat·ing, ne·ces·si·tates 1. To make necessary or unavoidable. 2. To require or compel. increased product pricing and make U.S. metalcasters less competitive in the global marketplace. Under The Family Leave Insurance Act of 2007 (S. 1681), employers would pay leave benefits through their regular payroll and be reimbursed by the Family Leave Insurance Fund created by this legislation. Employees and employers would both be required to pay a premium into the fund, roughly 0.2% of the employee's earnings. The benefits would be tiered based on the employee's earned wages. The legislation would require employees to pay insurance premiums for 12 months and have worked for the same employer for 12 months to receive benefits. Participation in this program would be mandatory for businesses with more than 50 employees. Those businesses with fewer than 50 employees may choose to opt into the program at a 50% discount and pay 0.1% premiums. Currently, the FMLA mandates that businesses with 50 or more employees grant their workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in the case of a serious health condition for either the employee or immediate family, as well as for the birth or adoption of a child. The act, which was intended to protect new parents and employees facing serious illnesses, has been under scrutiny since its passage in 1993. Employers claim the FMLA is too confusing con·fuse v. con·fused, con·fus·ing, con·fus·es v.tr. 1. a. To cause to be unable to think with clarity or act with intelligence or understanding; throw off. b. and opens the door for widespread workforce abuse. The bill has been referred to the Senate Finance Committee for consideration, but no hearings or votes have been scheduled. The bill has two additional co-sponsors, Sens. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Patty Murray Patricia Lynn Murray (born October 11, 1950) is the senior United States Senator from Washington. A member of the Democratic Party, she was first elected to the Senate in 1992 and has held the position ever since, becoming the first woman to represent Washington in the Senate. (D-Wash.). For more information, contact Alicia Oman, AFS A distributed file system for large, widely dispersed Unix and Windows networks from Transarc Corporation, now part of IBM. It is noted for its ease of administration and expandability and stems from Carnegie-Mellon's Andrew File System. AFS - Andrew File System Washington Office, at aoman@afsinc.org or 202/842-4864. |
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