The Gaps in Family-Friendly Policies Begin to Close

More large companies are beginning to see the value in paid leave and other benefits for parents, including hourly employees, reports the New York Times . This trend indicates that the effects of low unemployment, as well as tax cuts, have reached companies that depend on low-wage workers. Benefits such as paid parental leave are a crucial factor for people, especially women, in their continued employment, but hourly workers also have been the least likely to receive such benefits. Of the 20 largest employers who cover paid leave for birth mothers, 13 offer salaried employees additional bonding time beyond the six weeks for physical recovery, which is often recouped by short-term disability. Eight provide bonding time for birth mothers who are paid hourly, and they are more likely to get partial wages. A recent Pew Research Center survey found 94 percent of respondents said paid leave would help families, and 66 percent said it would aid the economy. Furthermore, advocacy groups such as Paid Leave for the United States and Organization United for Respect have been pressuring companies to offer it. However, the Pew survey also found 16 percent of people employed in the last two years said they needed to take leave but could not, and they were more likely to be low earners, as well as women, black, Hispanic, or lacking a college degree. Many large employers that provide hourly employees paid leave do so via short-term disability, which low-wage workers are less likely to have access to.