Underwood and Smith Introduce Job Protection Act, Historic Expansion of FMLA to Ensure Family and Medical Leave for All

WASHINGTON – Representative Lauren Underwood (IL-14) and Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) introduced the Job Protection Act, legislation designed to strengthen and expand Family and Medical Leave (FMLA) protections to tens of millions of workers nationwide.

“No one in America should have to choose between keeping their job and taking time off to care for a new child, an aging parent, or their own health,” said Underwood. “The Job Protection Act would be the largest expansion of FMLA in history, and make sure that working people can take care of themselves, and provide for their loved ones, without having to worry about their job security or putting their career plans on hold.”

“Millions of Americans every year need to rely on the Family and Medical Leave Act to take care of themselves or their families. Unfortunately, almost half of the workforce does not have access to these important protections,” said Senator Smith. "The Job Protection Act would close these gaps and extend family and medical leave protections to millions more workers. Under this bill, fewer people would have to choose between their jobs and taking care of their families.”

The Job Protection Act would expand FMLA by extending protections to employees of small businesses with fewer than 50 employees. It eliminates the 1,250-hour requirement at a single workplace, ensuring part-time and multi-job workers are also protected. The bill also reduces the time an employee must work before qualifying for FMLA from 12 months to 90 days, making it easier for those re-entering the workforce to take leave without fear of losing their jobs.

The Job Protection Act has earned the support of over 30 national, state, and local organizations. A fact sheet on the Job Protection Act can be found here.

“Although we estimate the Family and Medical Leave Act has allowed people to take time off to care for themselves and their loved ones more than 500 million times, many are left out of its protections and those left out are more likely to be workers of color. We continue to fight for the workers and caregivers left out and who cannot rely on their job waiting for them when they return from caring for themselves or their loved ones. The reintroduction of the Job Protection Act is proof of Rep. Underwood and Sen. Smith’s commitment to the fight for all workers, whether they are full- or part-time workers, or new on the job,” said Sharita Gruberg, Vice President for Economic Justice at the National Partnership for Women & Families. “Caring for yourself or your family without fear of losing one’s job should be available to every worker. Until a national, comprehensive paid family leave policy is passed, we will continue to advocate for workers to get these kinds of well-deserved protections.”

"The Job Protection Act is a critical piece of legislation in the advancement of family-friendly policies in this nation. The right to return to your job after taking leave is one of the most essential components of leave that will assure equity for all workers. In the absence of a federal paid family and medical leave program, ensuring the expansion of the Family Medical Leave Act to cover workers in businesses of all sizes, including part-time workers, is an important step forward. Representative Underwood and Senator Smith's leadership on this is a shining example of the type of care-first representation and legislation this country's workers and families need and deserve. This mirrors the important progress that Family Values @ Work's Network has made at the state level to make leave accessible to millions of workers. We are proud to support this legislation, and look forward to supporting it as a key step towards comprehensive paid family and medical leave." said Liana Cassar, Interim Executive Director of Family Values @ Work 

"We thank Senator Tina Smith and Representative Lauren Underwood for their continued leadership on leave. Working people are desperate for solutions to afford and care for their families and we are all paying attention to the leaders fighting for them right now — the leaders who are putting working families' needs over billionaires. Every one of us will need to take time away from work at some point to recover, to welcome a child, to care for a parent or family member, and every one of us should have the dignity and protection of our job and a paycheck while we do," Dawn Huckelbridge, Director of Paid Leave for All.

“No one should be forced to choose between caring for themselves or a loved one and keeping their job — but millions face this exact choice,” said Liz Shuler, AFL-CIO President. “Union workers have made incredible progress securing paid family and medical leave in contract negotiations. However, our nation’s outdated labor laws still deny this essential right to the many workers who are juggling multiple jobs or part-time shifts. On top of every other stress when you live paycheck to paycheck, no one should worry that they will lose their job because they get sick or have a baby. That’s why we’re proud to support The Job Protection Act, which will right this wrong and finally guarantee workers the leave protections they deserve.”