Cheyenne Mojica
Maternity Leave in the United States
Maternity Leave in the United States:
How important is it, and how do we compare?
Maternity leave is medically necessary for new mothers, as it takes several weeks to recover from growing and giving birth to a human being. Although it is vital to our mothers, why is it not a protected right to take time off from work to physically and mentally recover from giving birth? This paper explores the idea of maternity leave while also considering family leave in the United States, as well as in other countries. There is great need by both mother and child for recovery time, as well as the government’s duty to protect its citizens and their health. This is addressed, followed by the financial case of leave regarding the parents and regarding the companies in the United States. Lastly, the impact paid family leave has on the family and give options for future reform. America’s mothers deserve a break, and we must be the ones to make that break accessible by providing paid leave for at least six weeks.
Merriam-Webster defines maternity leave as “time off from a job given a mother to take care of a newborn child” (2018). While there is sometimes an option for paternal leave, often grouped together as parental leave, maternity leave is the focus of attention here. There are over 300 billion people in the United States, about half of them women (U.S. Census Bureau, 2017). According to the Center for Disease Control, there were over 3.8 million births in the U.S. in 2017. The same year, there were 60.3 births per 1,000 women aged 15–44, which may be considered a small percentage of the overall picture, but it is common enough that society needs to address the issue of working women starting families (2018). Many women may want to have kids, but struggle with the actuality of it because of the severe lack of job security atop the lack of income during leave. While they are granted their job or its equivalence when they return, women can sometimes be discriminated against based on the possibility of fertility. Better policies regarding parental leave, preferably including the male sex, may level the playing field.
While there is a Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), not everyone qualifies, nor does it guarantee any compensation for the absentee. This FMLA may allow for a leave of absence for qualifying parties, though it requires a declaration of disability, which is not always the case, as pregnancy is not necessarily a disability. According to the United States Department of Labor,
“The FMLA entitles eligible employees of covered employers to take unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons with continuation of group health insurance coverage under the same terms and conditions as if the employee had not taken leave. Eligible employees are entitled to twelve workweeks of leave.” (n.d.)
At first glance, twelve weeks may seem to be plenty of time for a medical leave, but is only three months, a small portion of the most challenging time of new parenthood. This leave begins before birth, when the new mother is waddling around with a large belly and swollen ankles, expected to carry their weight (figuratively and literally) except when it may severely endanger the pregnancy. Often, this leads to about nine weeks left to spend with the newborn, hardly enough time for a sleeping schedule to settle in, before the mother must go back to work or face the loss of her job. When she returns, the issue of breastfeeding arises. While ‘expressing breastmilk’ is legally protected, it is only for the first year. It is required of the employer to provide a place for privacy other than the bathroom, but sometimes only a small, dark closet is available. These breaks are also not required to be paid breaks. (United States Department of Labor, 2018)
The first two years of an infant’s life are the most crucial in the child’s development. With about ten milestones in this timespan, physical availability of the mother is vital to the infant’s well-being. “In the first year alone, (a) baby's brain grows from about 400g to a stupendous 1000g. While this growth and development is in part predetermined by genetic force, exactly how the brain grows is dependent upon emotional interaction, and that involves (the mother).” (Lipari, 2000). They are at their most dependent, critical stage of development, and many families cannot afford to be there for it all. Atop these needs of a newborn infant, mothers need time to recover mentally and physically from the trauma that is childbirth. According to what to expect, mothers need at least six weeks after childbirth, no matter how smooth the pregnancy and labor was. Even walking too much during this time can be physically harmful, as well as mentally distressing to mother (2018). When most families who do qualify cannot afford to take unpaid leave, they are forced to return to work too soon, damaging their bodies further in the process.
Currently, the United States government guarantees a job to return to, whether it is your own or one ‘equal to it’, when you take a FMLA qualifying leave of absence; however, it is an unpaid leave, and only 60% of Americans qualify. Of those who do qualify, 48% cannot take the leave because they cannot afford to go without a paycheck. This means only 2 in 10 Americans can take unpaid leave, even in serious life events (Dickens, 2017). Many are calling the U.S. government to step in and create a policy to address this issue. Recently, President Trump addressed it in the president’s budget proposal, calling for states to establish such programs (Konish, 2018). A few states already have a policy in place, requiring some percentage of pay to be distributed during family leave, generally for a portion of the leave. While some may call for a government paid program for family leave, this may not be practical, as the Social Security program is not only bankrupt, but in a deficit. Policy such as the one Trump proposed will require each state to develop a program that meets certain standards, possibly requiring employers to provide a form of insurance for family leave.
While it may seem quite costly for employers to have to provide paid family leave, it has a great return on investment. Companies that offer paid leave often are able to retain employees – especially female employees – whom they have poured money and resources into, especially during the recruitment process. An article by Adam C. Uzialko says “…onboarding and training a new employee is a massive cost. The Center for American Progress estimates that replacing a mid-range salaried employee costs about 20 percent of their annual pay, and that's not accounting for the additional time it will take a new worker to reach the skill level of an experienced employee.” The same article tells us that while it may be costly to provide paid family leave, it is costlier not to (2018). A survey in 2011 by the Center for Economic and Policy Research found that 91% of employers said California’s paid leave policy either boosted profits or had no effect (Appelbaum & Milkman, 2011). Using this information, let us assume a $50,000 salary, and take 20% ($10,000) as the cost for replacing the employee. Contrast this against a month’s pay of about $4,000 for the same employee. Using these numbers, it is apparent which one is the least costly, not even factoring in the loyalty and moral boosts from having a paid leave policy.
It is financially devastating for mid-range to low income families to have a child, which should not be the case in America. It can be nearly as devastating for even middle to upper class Americans, often leading them to go on some form of federal financial aid. “Every worker in this country will have a life event: an ill family member, a sick spouse, a dying parent, or a new child. It’s proven, everyone can use paid family leave.” These are statements from a documentary called Zero Weeks, which covers paid family leave in the U.S. and how scarce it is. The same documentary goes on to state that with some form of paid leave, new parents are 40% less likely to go on federal aid such as WIC, or food stamps (Dickens, 2017). The argument that instilling a policy establishing paid family leave will cost tax payers too much to be worth it falls apart, because it costs taxpayers to pay for the federal aid anyway. Because there is a lack of policy protecting time for life events – including childbirth – businesses often can find reason to discriminate against pregnant and ill employees, not necessarily illegally either. Even if the employee does qualify, they are not guaranteed the same job, but one of ‘equal’ value. In the case of an ill family member, there was a case covered in the Zero Weeks documentary involving a husband and his wife and daughter. The husband was diagnosed with cancer and let go because he needed too much time off. The mother was also let go because the company was worried about her not showing up reliably, or on time, or that she would have too many excuses. They were soon evicted from their apartment and had to move into a Ronald McDonald home (Dickens, 2017).
America is last in maternal care in the world. They have the least protections for maternity leave, let alone family leave (Dickens, 2017). While some states have fair laws regarding maternity leave, most only rely on the FMLA Act. The current policy is 25 years old and does not meet today’s Americans’ needs.
“The United States remains the only country in the developed world that does not mandate employers offer paid leave for new mothers…New mothers in Finland, for instance, are entitled to up to three years’ worth of paid leave. Norwegian moms get up to 91 weeks. The U.K. grants new mothers up to 39 weeks, while our neighbors in the frigid Canadian north get one year.” (Ingraham, 2018).
When you explain the American policy of maternal leave to people in nearly any other developed country, you get looks of shock and surprise. The idea that although having a child is common in human nature, it is not recognized nor respected by jobs. It also may bring to mind the question of working to live or living to work. Not providing some relief to employees for life events assumes that the employee lives to work for the company. In the United Kingdom, maternity leave is required: minimum of two weeks, four if you work in a factory (Gov.UK, n.d.). If America values family, why they cannot show it through workforce policies is befuddling.
The United States may not have to go so far as to require a year of paid leave, but the government soon must address the issue. It may seem expensive to fund a paid leave, but as mentioned before, it is less costly to provide it than not to. We also have options for spending even less through offering paid leave as an insurance, a part of a benefits package. Whether people take on the cost of the policy, the company does, or it is split in some way would be quite a beneficial solution to all. Purchasing different level policies, while still requiring a minimum participation from larger companies, would offset the cost of paid leave, especially for smaller companies.
Businesses have ethical responsibility to this social issue not only because of morality, but also as an economic responsibility. It is immoral to ask a new mother to come to work when they are still recovering from childbirth, especially if there were complications. To ask a woman to come into work while they are still barely able to walk, to ask them to stay on their feet eight hours a day for a profit is harmful to their employees, the ones they are responsible for. Not to neglect the difficulty of merely sitting at a desk for an office job, either. Having only a few weeks since physically tearing the parts being sat on at said desk, it does not look anything like the pictures you get on Google when you search ‘working mother’. There are thousand of images that portray a skewed idea of new working motherhood. “As a country, we are sending millions of women back to work every year, incredibly and kind of horrifically soon after they give birth” (Shortall, 2015). That is the moral problem.
The economic problem is the danger these companies are putting the next generation of Americans by practically forcing mothers back to work too soon. Not offering a viable option for mothers to take leave, and be able to afford it, puts parents in the position of not being able to take the needed time off. A 2011 study of 141 countries found that for every ten weeks paid leave offered, the infant mortality rate decreases by 10% (Steffeney, 2017). To offer paid leave is to offer better health for the next generation.
Women make up 47% of the workforce, and in 40% of American households, a woman is the sole or primary breadwinner. Paid work is a huge part of the engine of the economy and is essential for the engines of the families (Shortall, 2015). It is not always a woman’s ‘choice’ to work, it is provision for their family, as is for working men. It is also not a mere ‘choice’ for women to have a baby. To dismiss it as such is being dismissive of all parents, not just women or parents in the workforce. To ignore the need for paid family leave is to push many parents into poverty. When having a baby is as intertwined into human life and essential to the human race is it is, it is a mystery as to why it is taboo for parents, mother or father, to take time to spend with their newborn infant.
From the United States to China, from the UK to Australia, everyone is affected by maternity leave, paid or unpaid. Maternity leave shapes how family leave is structured, and how we view and respect working women in our businesses, and in our lives. The idea of maternity leave is nothing new, nor is family leave, in the United States, as well as in other countries. There is great need by families for recovery time, as well as the duty of our government to protect its citizens and their health. This was addressed, followed by the financial case of leave, regarding the parents, then regarding the companies in the United States. We reflect on the impact paid family leave has on the family and give options for future reform. Let us give our mothers a break.
Works Cited
Appelbaum, E., & Milkman, R. (2011). Leaves That Pay. Retrieved from Center for Economic and Policy Research: http://cepr.net/documents/publications/paid-family-leave-1-2011.pdf
Center for Disease Control. (2018, November 7). Births: Final Data for 2017. National Vital Statistics Reports, 67(8). Retrieved 11 26, 2018, from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr67/nvsr67_08-508.pdf
Dickens, K. (Director). (2017). Zero Weeks [Motion Picture].
Gov.UK. (n.d.). Maternity pay and leave. Retrieved from Gov.UK: https://www.gov.uk/maternity-pay-leave/leave
Ingraham, C. (2018, February 5). The world’s richest countries guarantee mothers more than a year of paid maternity leave. The U.S. guarantees them nothing. Retrieved from The Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/02/05/the-worlds-richest-countries-guarantee-mothers-more-than-a-year-of-paid-maternity-leave-the-u-s-guarantees-them-nothing/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.0d6a600eafaa
Konish, L. (2018, February 12). Trump's budget calls for six weeks' paid family leave. What it will cost you. Retrieved from CNBC: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/12/trumps-budget-calls-for-six-weeks-paid-family-leave.html
Lipari, J. (2000, July 1). Raising Baby: What You Need to Know. Psychology Today(July 2000). Retrieved 11 26, 2018, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/200007/raising-baby-what-you-need-know
Spalter-Roth, R. M., & Hartmann, H. I. (1990, April). Uneccessary Losses: Costs to Americans of the Lack of Family and Medical Leave. Retrieved from The Institute for Women’s Policy Research: https://iwpr.org/wp-content/uploads/wpallimport/files/iwpr-export/publications/Unnecessary%20Losses.pdf
U.S. Census Bureau. (2017). QuickFacts. Retrieved 11 26, 2018, from U.S. CENSUS BUREAU: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/INC110216
U.S. Department of Labor. (n.d.). Wage and Hour Division (WHD) Family and Medical Leave Act. Retrieved 11 26, 2018, from U.S. Department of Labor: https://www.dol.gov/whd/fmla/
United States Department of Labor. (2018, 04). Fact Sheet #73: Break Time for Nursing Mothers under the FLSA. Retrieved 11 26, 2018, from United States Department of Labor: https://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs73.htm
Uzialko, A. C. (2018, February 27). Why Offering Paid Leave Is Good for Your Business. Retrieved from Business.com: https://www.business.com/articles/paid-leave-is-good-for-business/
what to expect. (2018, June 28). Postpartum Recovery. Retrieved Novermber 26, 2018, from what to expect: https://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy/pregnancy-health/postpartum-recovery/