The New York Times that just hours following California Gov. Jerry Brown's signing of legislation that will raise the state's minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2022, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to make the city the first in the nation "to approve six weeks of fully paid leave for new parents — mothers and fathers, including same-sex couples, who either bear or adopt a child."
The story notes that the new law "mandates full pay, with the 45 percent difference being paid by employers ... Before the vote, the supervisors amended the proposal to make employees eligible only when they have worked for a company 180 days. The ordinance goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2017, for companies with more than 50 employees, and a year later for those with 20 or more workers."
The Times writes that "San Francisco’s proximity to Silicon Valley may have been an influence: The new law follows on the heels of trailblazing policies by tech companies such as Amazon, Apple, Google and Netflix, all of which offer relatively long paid parental leave for employees ... Indeed, by global standards, the San Francisco ordinance is a modest step. The United States is one of two countries out of 185 listed by the International Labor Organization that do not have a national law providing some form of paid parental leave. (The other is Papua New Guinea.)"
The story notes that "California is already one of only a few states that offer paid parental leave, with workers receiving 55 percent of their pay for six weeks, paid for by employee-financed public disability insurance ... Only two states besides California - New Jersey and Rhode Island - mandate paid parental leave, and none at full pay. The funds for parental leave in all three come from employee-funded public insurance systems."
The story notes that the new law "mandates full pay, with the 45 percent difference being paid by employers ... Before the vote, the supervisors amended the proposal to make employees eligible only when they have worked for a company 180 days. The ordinance goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2017, for companies with more than 50 employees, and a year later for those with 20 or more workers."
The Times writes that "San Francisco’s proximity to Silicon Valley may have been an influence: The new law follows on the heels of trailblazing policies by tech companies such as Amazon, Apple, Google and Netflix, all of which offer relatively long paid parental leave for employees ... Indeed, by global standards, the San Francisco ordinance is a modest step. The United States is one of two countries out of 185 listed by the International Labor Organization that do not have a national law providing some form of paid parental leave. (The other is Papua New Guinea.)"
The story notes that "California is already one of only a few states that offer paid parental leave, with workers receiving 55 percent of their pay for six weeks, paid for by employee-financed public disability insurance ... Only two states besides California - New Jersey and Rhode Island - mandate paid parental leave, and none at full pay. The funds for parental leave in all three come from employee-funded public insurance systems."
- KC's View:
