State employees in Georgia who give birth or adopt a child will be able to take up to six weeks of paid parental leave.
Gov. Brian Kemp on Tuesday signed House Bill 1010, doubling the amount of paid time off new parents can take to care for their child.
“It is a low-cost, high-value benefit that will now be available to all 200,000 state employees,” Speaker Pro Tem Jan Jones, who sponsored the legislation, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution earlier this month. “Georgia is the largest employer in the state, and I felt we should serve as a role model.”
While workers may take up to 12 weeks off under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 without fear of losing their job, that time is unpaid. This legislation allows state workers to get paid for at least six weeks of time off.
The new law takes effect at the start of the state fiscal year on July 1. The leave has to be taken within the first 12 months of giving birth or adopting a child.
Previously, the state was “putting the burden on women to scrounge their vacation and sick leave to make up the difference,” Jones said. If they didn’t have sufficient leave accrued, they would take the time without pay.
Some lawmakers, particularly those in the GOP, said their support for this legislation is connected to helping families, mothers and children. Republican state leaders have pushed a variety of bills related to family support after passing a restrictive abortion law in 2019, although Jones said this bill is unrelated to the abortion statute.
Georgia’s new benefit still remains low compared with states such as Colorado, Massachusetts and Washington, which permit workers to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave.
For now, Jones said, “I’m comfortable with where this takes the state.”
In a statement, Jasmine Bowles, executive state director of 9to5 Georgia, an organization supporting working women, applauded the passage of HB 1010 as “a step in the right direction,” and she urged lawmakers to continue enacting paid parental leave laws that affect more workers, including those in low-income jobs.
About the Author
