Yesterday, after a decades-long battle, NTEU is proud to report historic congressional approval of a paid parental leave program for frontline civil servants.

Passed by the Senate on December 17, 2019, the 12-week paid parental leave program is part of a defense bill that the president is expected to sign into law. The House approved the legislation last week. The program, beginning in October 2020, will allow federal employees to use paid leave for the birth, adoption or fostering of a child.

“History will rightly record this moment when the federal government finally gave its workforce the ability to welcome a new child into their homes without sacrificing their financial well-being,” Reardon said. “This is one of the most consequential workplace benefits granted to federal employees in many, many years and NTEU is honored to have been a part of this important movement.”

NTEU first endorsed Rep. Carolyn Maloney’s (D-N.Y.) paid parental leave legislation in 2000 and has worked hard ever since to build a strong base of support on Capitol Hill. The union believes that paid parental leave is a smart, progressive way to recruit and retain the next generation of federal employees.

NTEU will continue to advocate for a broader paid family leave program that would help employees take time off to care for seriously ill family members.

This article was posted in its original form here.