WashingtonWatch.com - H.R. 5781, The Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act of 2008

Comment by DL (October 8, 2008, 01:00:00)

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

My wife and I just had a child. She is so precious. But let me tell you what makes it so hard to enjoy her. My wife, during the pregnancy had to work overtime, on the weekends, and on her regular day assigned off just to build up leave to use for her pregnancy. She was placed on bed rest because she was working to hard to build up leave, meaning she had to take extra leave before the birth occurred. She ended up using all the leave and comp time accrued. They advanced her up to two years worth of leave, she is deep in the hole, and now she has to spend the next two years trying to break even. Any leave she takes is leave without pay. So the thing is, I am taking all my leave now to take my daughter to the doctors. She currently has to be out of daycare, and I already used my whopping 10 days of family sick leave/yr when she was born.(had to fight to get that off)Nobody cares. They just want you to come into work and leave your personal life outside. I am contemplating quitting now....

Comment by vote in favor (October 2, 2008, 01:00:00)

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I am totally in favor of this bill, we shovel out money to pay for crack whores to have a child a year just to raise thier benefits. They get free housing, childcare WIC, cash, free medical/dental and foodstamps. Yet hardworking mothers cannot start families because 6 weeks off is to much to ask for. I'm tired of standing in line at a store behind a food stamp whore, who had to bring an extra body along because she has two baskets full of food. When do we honest hardworking people get a break??? BTW, whoever said government benefits were so great was obviously misinformed, do some more research before you talk!...

Comment by Kg (October 1, 2008, 01:00:00)

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Keep in mind that this bill is meant to save money and keep women employed in the federal government. It costs more to lose a new mother and have to re-train someone new than to give the new mother a decent amount of maternity leave & in return hopefully she'll be ready to return to work at the end of her 8 weeks....

Comment by LJ (September 30, 2008, 01:00:00)

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I fail to see why it is our responsibility to pay Medicaid, Welfare, Food Stamps, etc. to lazy people who are able to work not looking for jobs. The avg family makes over 25K in benefits and over 70% arent looking for a job because if they did, theyd make less. AND they have their entire day to do as they see fit. The govt (and us as taxpayers) are stuck footing the bill. So, why should we have to pay this?...

Comment by christina (September 26, 2008, 01:00:00)

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

abuse leave? there seems to be people on here that think we don't have other people to take care of, like our other children. and yes if i have to spell it out that means having to use leave to do that....

Comment by Chris (September 26, 2008, 01:00:00)

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

it is typical that the dirty old men who work for the government would not support not passing this bill. You have your fat wife at home taking care of your children and I'm sure you boss her around and think you are the top dog, just like you are giving the perception here. Have some compassion. Until you have been in a womans shoes to have a child, recover from surgery and learn how to take care of a helpless human, then SHUT YOUR MOUTH!!!!!! For the idiot who said govt employees start out with sick/vacation leave, get your facts straight, gov employees start with a fat 0. You cant say that for most private companies....

Comment by Liuetenant (September 26, 2008, 01:00:00)

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

To no vote, Please give out correct information federal employees at least were I work recieve 2 hours of sick leave every two weeks upon entering the job which at 26 weeks in calender year adds up to a whooping total of 52 hours and 4 hours of annual leave every two weeks which comes out to 104. This leave has to cover everything and in most services you can't carry over anymore than 240 hours of annual levae a year which means you either use it or loose it and it is subject to Supervisor approval which most government jobs run short staff and you get your leave denied due to manpower and staffing issuses. So there is no Giant Stack Pile from which to draw even if you are not abusing leave. And to the person with empty pockets I don't know where you are getting your information on the health care package for federal employees but I know everytime I go to use my insurance that I pay the same premiums as everybody else does I am told "You know they don't pay very much"....

Comment by No Vote (September 25, 2008, 01:00:00)

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I didn't read all posts, but I did not see where anyone explained that government workers accrue leave every two weeks. Employees with less than five years can accrue 104 hours of sick leave in one year. They are also accruing 104 hours of annual leave (vacation) in the same year. If they do not abuse the leave, then by 30 months, they could accrue enough combined leave to use while on maternity leave for 12 weeks. A responsible government employee should plan and save their leave for emergencies. Employees do not lose their sick leave at the end of the year. It rolls over. Annual leave under 240 hours rolls over as well. I personally have had a baby while employed and used my accrued sick leave while I was out of work. It was all paid. Those employees that abuse their leave deserve what they get. Non-paid absense. Why should tax payers bail them out?...

Comment by Lieutenant (September 25, 2008, 01:00:00)

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I am a federal employee and I didn't recieve any advance leave upon signing on to this job.I don't know what government agency you work for. I have taken two oaths in my life captain one to defend this country from its enemies both foreign and domestic. And to to protect and serve its citizens. I love my country and my job but i love my family more. Sorry you can't say the same. I am fortunate to have plenty of leave time to use as I want, my wife who is also a federal employee doesn't due to the long illness during her mothers passing this year which shortly after she found out she was pregnant after being told all her life she couldn't have children. No planning in the world can account for a miracle. So with that said paid leave or not me and my wife will be absent from duty in are service to our government after the birth of our child and Captain you and Fargo will have to pay for that absence in the form of overime for my replacement. God bless AMERICA!!!!...

Comment by No Vote (September 25, 2008, 01:00:00)

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Make that 6 weeks of Maternity Leave. Plus, depending on the agency, a person can go in the "hole" with leave and work their way back to zero....

Comment by >.< (September 19, 2008, 01:00:00)

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

So emptypockets, should we just shut up and settle. I work here because I put forth the effort to get a job here, whose to say everybody in the private sector wants a federal job anyways. And, just because there are people who want a federal job, but can't get one, doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement....

Comment by EmptyPockets (September 10, 2008, 01:00:00)

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Let me get this straight. You already have a job that pays better than most retail jobs. Your healthcare plan is one to be envied by 90% of the people I work with. In fact, most of us can only *wish* to get a federal job! We get NO unpaid leave, just our vacation and personal *hours* per year. Health insurance comes with a $5000. deductible (which realistically means NO healthcare plan). I do agree with the comments about the slackers and people milking the system. They are in my grocery lines the first week of each month and making out a helluva lot better than my family. That's still no excuse to pick my pocket for yet more money. You want to see real hard times? Get a job in the private sector. You'll run back to your desk, pension, and benefits quick enough!...

Comment by anotherfed (September 5, 2008, 01:00:00)

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I haven't taken a vacation in two years. I have taken a day or two off attached to my weekends to visit family. I just now have 200 hours of vacation and 190 hours of sick. I have been sick a couple of times this year and have had the normal doctor appts. I am not pregnant, but would like to start a family. With that being said I will still have to keep saving to cover maternity. So, I guess everyone who is against this just believes that if you want a family then you do not deserve any vacations or sick leave for any other reason. I can only assume (because I have no other way of knowing) that the people on here that are against it are against families and children in general. While there are many companies that do not offer maternity leave, the employees are able to pay into stated disability or some other disability insurance that provides money during the maternity period. As federal employess we get nothing besides our saved leave!...

Comment by MamaToOne (August 20, 2008, 01:00:00)

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Seriously people?! 8 weeks of PAID leave isn't that big a deal. The government is already set to pay these women as it is (assuming no pregnancy). All this is going to do is relieve stress and financial hardship on the (most likely) underpaid federal employees. Women need time to recover and care for their newborn children....

Comment by Christina (August 19, 2008, 01:00:00)

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT

So Fargo and Captain, or let me just make it easy and say Captain Fargo. So women are supposed to wait 8 years of employment before having a child. Well, let's say these women have children already, two, like I do. Are we to assume they didn't have to take off due to any sickness their children might have endured in the past years. I've only been with the federal government for three years, was I really supposed to wait 8 years before having my third child. I had both my other children while serving in the Army....

Comment by Christina (August 19, 2008, 01:00:00)

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT

When I got out I ended up having to very young children while starting off with the federal government. As soon as my daughter started daycare, she caught ammonia and I had to take off a month. My son caught RSV at the daycare, and I had to take of another few weeks for him. My children went to a very nice, very well kept daycare. Unfortunately, that's what happens when children attend a daycare they get sick, it's inevitable. I've also had to take off for all their doctor's appointments they've had, and when kids are that young, they go to the doctor's regularly. And, I do recall eating at an Olive Garden for a company Christmas part which made half of the department sick and I had to take off a week for that. In-between all these there were other reasons for taking leave that were out of my control, i.e. death in the family. How in the heck was I supposed to save up 6 weeks in three years?...

Comment by Fargo (August 11, 2008, 01:00:00)

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I agree with Captain entirely. A fed gets 13 days of sick and 13 days of vacation on day 1 and even more if employed for more than three years. This means that in 8 years as previously referenced, and employee could save up 42 weeks of leave. Isn't normal maternity leave only 6 weeks? The issue is that people in the federal government waste sick leave, and I wouldn't promote that. And federal government retirement, -the private sector should be so lucky. Have fun finding a guaranteed pension elsewhere....

Comment by Fargo (August 11, 2008, 01:00:00)

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I work for the second largest department in the federal government and in addition to very adequate leave benefits, several programs exist to allow for the advance of sick or annual leave to ensure this happens. and as for expanding the leave donor program, I am firmly against. In my experience, if the people you work with directly are not willing to donate leave to you to help you through a tough time, it is probably because you are a bad employee and eveyone wants you gone anyway. Good ridance to bad employees, -everyone knows the federal government has more than its share....

Revision by webmaster (August 7, 2008, 01:00:00)

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT

H.R. 5781 would provide that 8 of the 12 weeks of parental leave made available to a Federal employee shall be paid leave.

Detailed Summary

Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act of 2008 - Allows federal employees to substitute any available paid leave for any leave without pay available for either the: (1) birth of a child; or (2) placement of a child with the employee for either adoption or foster care. Makes available for any of the 12 weeks of leave an employee is entitled to for such purposes: (1) four administrative weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth or placement involved; and (2) any accumulated annual or sick leave.

Authorizes the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to increase the amount of paid parental leave available to up to eight administrative workweeks, based on the consideration of: (1) the benefits provided to the federal government of offering increased paid parental leave, including enhanced recruitment and retention of employees; (2) the cost to the federal government of increasing the amount of paid parental leave that is available to employees; (3) trends in the private sector and in state and local governments with respect to offering paid parental leave; and (4) the federal government's role as a model employer.

Amends the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 to allow the same substitution for covered congressional employees.

Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to allow the same substitution for Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Library of Congress employees.

Status of the Legislation

Latest Major Action: 7/21/2008: Referred to Senate subcommittee. Status: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs referred to Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia.

Points in Favor

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Points Against

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Comment by Lily (August 4, 2008, 01:00:00)

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I agree with Sher! I would be more concerned with my tax dollars going to someone that is milking the system, rather than to a federal employee who is working for my country. Our healthcare and school systems are overburden with people that don’t even contribute to our economy. Illegal people use up a big chunk of these resources….that’s who we need to be concerned with. Not federal employees, who by the way are U.S. citizen and tax paying people....

Revision by webmaster (July 24, 2008, 01:00:00)

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EDT

H.R. 5781 would provide that 8 of the 12 weeks of parental leave made available to a Federal employee shall be paid leave.

Detailed Summary

Authorizes the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to increase the amount of paid parental leave available to up to eight administrative workweeks, based on the consideration of: (1) the benefits provided to the federal government of offering paid parental leave, including enhanced recruitment and retention of employees; (2) the cost to the federal government of increasing the amount of paid parental leave that is available to employees; (3) trends in the private sector and in state and local governments with respect to offering paid parental leave; and (4) the federal government's role as a model employer.

Amends the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 to allow the same substitution for covered congressional employees.

Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to allow the same substitution for Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Library of Congress employees.

Requires GAO to study and report to Congress on the feasibility and desirability of providing an insurance benefit to federal employees which affords partial or total wage replacement with respect to periods of qualified leave. Defines "qualified leave" as leave that: (1) is available by reason of the need to care for the spouse, child, or parent of the employee having a serious health condition or by reason of a serious health condition affecting the employee that renders such employee unable to perform the functions of his or her position; and (2) would otherwise be leave without pay.

Status of the Legislation

Points in Favor

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Points Against

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Comment by Sher (July 22, 2008, 01:00:00)

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EDT

Let's see, with my tax dollars I have to pay for hoochies on welfare, WIC, Medicare and FoodStamps... Oh lets not forget how my daughter could not get into Pre-K because it was geared for low income family. So when does the hardworking mom get a break?...

Comment by Barack obama (July 22, 2008, 01:00:00)

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I am a muslim and I don't really care about the Citizens of this country, I worked in a terrorist training camp, and I am best friends with Osama Bin Ladin...

Comment by Christina (July 21, 2008, 01:00:00)

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EDT

I bet most of the men on here are single, and don't have kids. If they are married, or do have kids, I feel sorry for their families. I'd shoot myself if my father or husband was as arrogant as these pricks!...

Status as of July 21, 2008

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EDT

7/21/2008: Referred to Senate subcommittee. Status: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs referred to Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia.