Across the Aisle: Paid Leave in the United States
The United States is a global outlier when it comes to paid family and medical leave. Although 13 states and the District of Columbia have passed paid family and medical leave laws, the US is the only OECD country and one of only six nations in the world without nationally guaranteed paid leave. Nearly half of all US workers, including approximately two-thirds of low-wage workers, are not eligible for the 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year provided under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Democrats and Republicans in both the House of Representatives and the Senate are currently working together to address this issue, seeking to advance bipartisan paid leave policies.
The Institute of Global Politics Women’s Initiative invites you to join a virtual Across the Aisle discussion with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), co-chairs of the Senate Bipartisan Paid Family Leave Working Group, and professors Jane Waldfogel and Sandra Black, on the history of the issue, recent bicameral and bipartisan progress on national paid leave policies, and the work remaining for the 118th Congress and beyond.
Opening remarks by Keren Yarhi-Milo, Dean and Adlai E. Stevenson Professor of International Affairs, Columbia SIPA
Panelists:
• Kirsten Gillibrand, US Senator, D-New York, 2009–present
• Bill Cassidy, US Senator, R-Louisiana, 2015–present
• Jane Waldfogel, Compton Foundation Centennial Professor for the Prevention of Children’s and Youth Problems, Columbia School of Social Work
• Sandra Black, Professor of Economics and of International and Public Affairs, Columbia SIPA
This event is hosted by the Institute of Global Politics (IGP) Women’s Initiative at Columbia SIPA. The Across the Aisle series is made possible due to generous support from the Knight Foundation.
About the Institute of Global Politics (IGP) at Columbia SIPA
The Institute of Global Politics (IGP) convenes leading scholars and practitioners to advance policy solutions to today’s pressing global challenges. IGP brings together experts—from the public and private sectors and across the political spectrum—to foster civil discourse and create evidence-based policy strategies for local to global impact.
About the Institute of Global Politics (IGP) Women’s Initiative
The Institute of Global Politics (IGP) Women’s Initiative develops evidence-based strategies to advance gender equality in the United States and around the world. Drawing on the expertise of affiliated faculty from across Columbia University, the Women’s Initiative takes a comparative, cross-disciplinary approach to make unparalleled impact through research and policy solutions, convenings, and partnerships.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
We are social investors committed to fostering a more effective democracy. Our funding supports free expression and journalism, community arts and culture, research into media and democracy, and the progress of American cities and towns where the Knight brothers once published newspapers.
