Today marks the 32nd anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Signed into law by President Bill Clinton, it provides millions of eligible working families with the ability to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave to bond with a newborn, a newly adopted or foster child, to care for a seriously ill, injured or disabled family member, to address one’s own serious health condition or to care for a service member or address needs related to a family members deployment. And while the FMLA has been used 500 million times, many workers are still left behind. [1]

Nearly 44 percent of workers are not eligible for the unpaid FMLA leave because they work for small employers, don’t work enough hours or haven’t worked for their employer long enough. And in 2024, among those workers not protected by FMLA, more than 2.7 million needed to take leave but didn’t because they were afraid of losing their job. This isn’t right. Working families shouldn't have to choose between caring for themselves, or their loved ones, in a critical crisis and their jobs.

That’s why right now, Congress has an opportunity to change this by supporting two FMLA expansion bills that will be reintroduced today: The Job Protection Act and the Caring for All Families Act. If you're one of the 106 million people that don’t have access to paid family leave through their jobs, this will matter to you. The Job Protection Act will protect workers by eliminating the requirement that a workplace have 50 or more employees and if you work at a small business, this is significant. It will also protect workers in low wage jobs or those who work more than one job by eliminating the requirement that a worker must have worked 1,250 hours at a single workplace over the previous year. This is a critical piece of legislation that will help close the gaps in FMLA coverage and improve FMLA protection.

The Caring for All Families Act is a commonsense piece of legislation. Families come in all forms and support of the Caring for All Families Act means our legislators believe that people can receive care from whoever is part of their family. Any family relationship regardless of biological or legal relationship qualifies for taking family and medical leave. This includes, an uncle, aunt, sibling, adult child, grandparent, grandchild, son or daughter-in-law, domestic partner or other significant relationship. [2] This legislation expands the definition of family to include chosen family and as families continue to evolve, it's important that we have policies that meet the demands of today’s workers.

The FMLA has been used over 500 million times by working people who need to take time off for their own health conditions, to care for a newborn, adopted or foster child, to care for an adult child or to care for a spouse, parent or servicemember. Expanding the FMLA to include the Job Protection Act and the Caring for All Families Act is necessary for many workers who are left behind, including workers of color who are unable to access paid leave through FMLA. Closing the gaps of existing policy and strengthening the law’s protection is critical now. Paid leave policies allow workers to be there for their families when they need it most and they don’t leave anyone out. Working families are in need and deserve paid, job-protected paid leave policies that benefit all.

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