Paid family medical leave bill signed into Oregon law

With the passage and signing of House Bill 2005, Oregon has officially become the ninth place in the nation to have passed a paid family and medical leave insurance policy.

 

When benefits become accessible in 2023, about 1.5 million workers in Oregon will be covered, according to a press release from Time to Care Oregon, a coalition of 36 organizations led by Family Forward Action.

 

Signed into law by Gov. Kate Brown last week, the new insurance program will be administered by the Employment Department and will provide up to 12 paid weeks away from work for any qualifying reason for leave, with an additional two weeks for pregnancy-related conditions. It will be available to parents welcoming a new child into their family, workers needing to care for another family member (whether or not they are biologically related), or anyone needing to tend to their own health condition.

 

All Oregon workers will have access to paid family and medical leave insurance, regardless of the industry they work in, their employer size or full- or part-time status.

 

The program will provide full wage replacement for low-income workers and protect against workplace discrimination or retaliation for using the benefit. Oregon’s paid family and medical leave law will include those workers who are currently excluded from other current federal and state leave laws.

 

“Nearly a decade of work has come to fruition today, with the country’s most progressive paid family and medical leave bill getting signed into law,” said Andrea Paluso, Executive Director of Family Forward.

 

“This new law will impact millions of Oregonians — nearly 1.5 million workers and their families will no longer have to worry about cobbling together patchwork systems to make ends meet, or be forced to make heartbreaking decisions about being with their family or not. Everyone who participated in the passage of this common-sense, pro-family law should be proud of what we have accomplished. The effects of this new law will be long-lasting, and I hope this policy serves as a blueprint for passing a paid leave policy at the national level.”