Buyer Beware

CHAPTER 8

Target Country—United States—Family Leave Benefits

The U.S. Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) sets a minimum standard for parental leave, but due to the exclusion of small employers and short-tenure workers, about 40 percent of U.S. workers are not eligible for the FMLA. In general, U.S. employers, as a group, have not stepped in to fill the gap. While about 60 percent of the workers are eligible for FMLA-related leave, only about one-fourth of the U.S. employers offer fully paid “maternity-related leave” of any duration, and one-fifth of the U.S. employers offer no maternity-related leave of any kind, paid or unpaid. Private employers do not appear to be narrowing the statutory gap in parental leave entitlements between the United ...