Bringing residence a brand new child is hard sufficient, however the present United States parental depart coverage could make issues much more troublesome. The US solely ensures 12 weeks of unpaid parental depart through Household and Medical Depart (FMLA) — with restrictions concerning the firm’s measurement and the worker’s tenure — leaving new mother and father to find out if they’ll afford additional time with their new child or to recuperate after delivery.
In line with a 2019 Pew Research Center report, “the US is the one nation amongst 41 nations that doesn’t mandate any paid depart for brand new mother and father.” Additionally they famous that “the share of mothers who’re working both full or half time in the USA has increased over the previous half-century from 51% to 72%, and virtually half of two-parent households now include two full-time working parents.”
The National Institute for Health reviews that on common, new mothers return to work after 10 weeks, and that longer depart is “seen primarily amongst economically advantaged teams, reminiscent of faculty educated, married mother and father who can afford to take unpaid depart.”