By ACACIA RODRIGUEZ

Paid Family Leave (PFL) is a New York State policy that grants up to 12 weeks of protected job leave, intermittently or consecutively, for workers to care for their families. During this time, eligible workers can receive up to 67% of their paycheck while caring for a spouse, domestic partner, child or stepchild, parent or stepparent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, or sibling. Most full-time workers are eligible for PFL after 26 consecutive weeks of employment and most part-time workers receive the benefit after 175 days.

Bonding With Children

Bonding Leave is a type of PFL that applies to parents welcoming a new child. Parents can take time off to bond with their new child within the first 12 months of the child’s birth. Bonding Leave can be used to care for newborn children, a spouse’s or domestic partner’s children, legal wards, adopted children, foster children, and grandchildren, though it cannot be used for prenatal conditions — it is specifically for new births or adoptions.

For men in New York City, paternity leave is on the rise. Nationally, men take paid family leave at a lower rate than women, but male workers at the City of New York utilize PFL for precious bonding time with their growing families.

Local 768 Licensed Creative Arts Therapist Rajesh Kamal was elated to welcome the birth of his first child with his wife, a former NYC public school teacher who resigned to focus on her pregnancy and family.

“I had a complete misunderstanding about how PFL and FMLA leave can run concurrently, how best to optimize that time, or what I needed to do to keep our insurance current,” Kamal said. “I wish I had been able to talk with other fathers who had been through it to better navigate the system.”

Kamal planned ahead of time so he could focus on his family and not spend as much time on paperwork amid the chaos of a new baby and a wife in need of care at home. After researching, he began saving his annual leave and worked holidays to bank extra time. The new father staggered his PFL to span nine months by using one or two days a week to remain home so that he could be available to take his family to medical appointments and be there for any major developments. For the remainder of the time, he used his accrued leave balances under FMLA.

“The main thing was not to miss all those milestones. If you go straight back to your normal work schedule after just a short period, then when you get home the baby’s asleep, your partner is exhausted, and you missed everything.”

Before PFL, Kamal would have taken FMLA leave, using his paid time off and sick days until his balance was exhausted, after which he would have to return to work or lose health insurance at a time when his family depended on him. PFL provides job protection and security by allowing workers to prioritize care without compromising the safety of their income and health insurance.

“Everybody’s happy and healthy, a little bit tired and cranky sometimes,” Kamal said. “I wouldn’t ask for anything else, you know?”

Caring for Family

As parents and grandparents get older or family members become too sick to care for themselves, family care has become a paramount concern. When her sister from another state asked for support taking over care of their mother, Local 1549 Clerical Associate Shanti McGee knew she had the benefit and readily began researching the qualification process.

“I chose to take two weeks up front, and then used the remainder of the time intermittently,” she said.

McGee spent the time familiarizing herself with her mother’s medical needs, introducing her to the neighbors and new neighborhood, and learning more about sharing her home with her mother again.

“PFL gives you about a year to use intermittent scheduled leave,” McGee said. “I thought that worked better for me to go to her doctor’s appointments throughout the year.”

Eligible members can choose to use the leave for a 12-week period continuously and then use accrued leave balances to cover any additional time. McGee elected to use the benefit intermittently and save her accrued time off for herself.

“Without the benefit, I’m sure the appointments would have exceeded my leave balance, and I would have been working with no pay,” she said. “That could leave me financially insecure or homeless. I’ve seen that happen to people when the benefit wasn’t in place for them.”

Paid Family Leave is crucial for workers who become new caregivers. For those still building a support system or who are without a village to raise a child, PFL allows for better financial security and continued health insurance.

PFL and FMLA are different!

Paid Family Leave (PFL) is a New York state law that enables eligible workers to receive wages when taking extended leave from work for qualifying reasons for a period of 12 workweeks per year.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is a federal act that enables eligible workers to take uncompensated extended leave from work to care for themselves or a family member for a period of 12 workweeks a year.

PFL differs from FMLA in that once it is granted, PFL allots up to 67% of salary. FMLA is unpaid leave, meaning that members have to use their accrued time off in order to receive pay. Health insurance is protected under FMLA and PFL, provided premiums continue to be paid (if any).

How to Access the Paid Family Leave Benefit:

1. Conserve your leave balance and/or consider working holidays to collect compensatory time.
2. Plan how you’d like to take leave: all at one time, or by working part-time?
3. Notify your employer’s HR department and supervisor 30 days before taking leave (if possible).
4. Apply with the agency’s insurance carrier within 30 days before or after the first day of leave. Call the Paid Family Leave Helpline at 844.337.6303 to identify the agency’s insurance carrier.
5. Adhere to your selected leave schedule, or speak to the agency’s HR department and insurance carrier to change your schedule.

Reference: “New York State.” Paid Family Leave, New York State, paidfamilyleave.ny.gov/employees.