Necessity – Paid Maternity Leave
Despite being considered as one of the world’s leaders, the United States lags behind the international community when it comes to the issue of paid maternity leave. Surprisingly, “the U.S. is only one of three countries in the world that don’t offer paid maternity leave” (Kim 6 May 2015). In a society that expects parents to balance work with caring for a child, there are significant financial repercussions when people take time off work to care for a newborn (Kim 6 May 2015). The United States should ensure paid maternity leave because it will benefit future generations and the overall labor force.
First, paid maternity leave would benefit future generations by helping parents afford childcare. In addition to the 40% of workers who take unpaid maternity leave, “a quarter either quit or are let go from their jobs when a new child arrives” (Covert 31 March 2016). Considering that parents spend “about $70 a month for baby clothes and diapers and more than $120 …show more content…
Since “only 12 percent of […] workers have access to paid family leave through their employer” (“DOL Factsheet” 2016), many parents cannot afford to take off the full twelve unpaid weeks that the Family Medical Leave Act guarantees (Kurtzleben 15 July 2015). Many people cannot afford to have no income for twelve weeks, so they come back to work prematurely. This has negative consequences because these parents feel stressed about their newborn in the care of a stranger and may even feel guilty about leaving the baby during the day. (Lilley 31 August 2011) With all of these thoughts on their mind, it is difficult for new parents to return to work and provide high-quality work, which negatively impacts the quality of work the company receives. Providing paid maternity leave will provide parents with the time to recover and get settled into a routine with a newborn before returning to their
Despite being considered as one of the world’s leaders, the United States lags behind the international community when it comes to the issue of paid maternity leave. Surprisingly, “the U.S. is only one of three countries in the world that don’t offer paid maternity leave” (Kim 6 May 2015). In a society that expects parents to balance work with caring for a child, there are significant financial repercussions when people take time off work to care for a newborn (Kim 6 May 2015). The United States should ensure paid maternity leave because it will benefit future generations and the overall labor force.
First, paid maternity leave would benefit future generations by helping parents afford childcare. In addition to the 40% of workers who take unpaid maternity leave, “a quarter either quit or are let go from their jobs when a new child arrives” (Covert 31 March 2016). Considering that parents spend “about $70 a month for baby clothes and diapers and more than $120 …show more content…
Since “only 12 percent of […] workers have access to paid family leave through their employer” (“DOL Factsheet” 2016), many parents cannot afford to take off the full twelve unpaid weeks that the Family Medical Leave Act guarantees (Kurtzleben 15 July 2015). Many people cannot afford to have no income for twelve weeks, so they come back to work prematurely. This has negative consequences because these parents feel stressed about their newborn in the care of a stranger and may even feel guilty about leaving the baby during the day. (Lilley 31 August 2011) With all of these thoughts on their mind, it is difficult for new parents to return to work and provide high-quality work, which negatively impacts the quality of work the company receives. Providing paid maternity leave will provide parents with the time to recover and get settled into a routine with a newborn before returning to their