January 13, 2016: New York State Bar Association Backs Paid Family Leave for New Yorkers

January 13, 2016: New York State Bar Association Backs Paid Family Leave for New Yorkers

1.14.2016

By Communications Department

The New York State Bar Association commends Governor Andrew Cuomo for including the concept of paid family leave in his proposed state budget.

“The United States is alone among developed countries in failing to guarantee some form of paid family leave for employees to care for ailing family members or a newborn child,” said New York State Bar Association President David P. Miranda of Albany (Heslin, Rothenberg Farley & Mesiti).

“Governor Cuomo understands that no workers should be forced to choose between keeping their jobs and attending to health of their family,” Miranda said.

“New York state should modernize outdated laws on family leave to have a uniform public policy that will enhance employee morale, minimize attrition and business disruption, and save businesses money.

The governor has proposed 12 weeks of job-protected family, employee-funded leave to be used to care for sick family members or new-born babies.

The New York State Bar Association also supports legislation that would provide American workers with up to 12 weeks of partial income while on leave for certain health conditions, including pregnancy and childbirth recuperation, and the illness of a child, spouse, parent or other family member.

Enacting family medical leave is among the Association’s 2016 legislative priorities.

The House of Delegates, the governing body of the State Bar Association, on November 7, 2015 approved its FMILA report, which recommends support of paid family medical leave is available at www.nysba.org/substantivereports.

The 74,000-member New York State Bar Association is the largest voluntary state bar association in the nation. It was founded in 1876.

Contact: Lise Bang-Jensen

Director, Media Services and Public Affairs

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