April 28, 2021
Most American workers would have access for the first time to paid family and medical leave under a proposal released Wednesday by President Joe Biden, but full benefits wouldn’t be available for 10 years.
The proposal, which is part of Biden’s broader American Families Plan, would create a federally run program that pays workers who take time off to care for seriously ill family members, bond with a newborn or newly adopted child, or tend to the workers’ own serious health problems. The program would phase in gradually at a projected cost of $225 billion over a decade, with the maximum 12 weeks of benefits becoming available in year 10, according to the White House.