Expecting Moms Could Get Paid Leave In New York

Expecting moms in New York could get paid leave before their babies are even born. New York would be the first state in America to offer soon-to-be moms paid leave prior to giving birth.

Many expecting moms struggle to make prenatal and other appointments because they do not have the paid leave available, but Governor Kathy Hochul wants to change that. Her Fiscal Year 2025 Executive Budget addresses the issue many pregnant people face in New York.

Pregnant New Yorkers have limited paid options for leave to pursue prenatal appointments. New York led the nation with the roll out of Paid Family Leave (PFL) and can continue to do so by providing additional leave in Workers’ Compensation Law for prenatal care. The Executive Budget amends PFL to permit up to 40 hours of leave for eligible employees to attend prenatal appintments, without impacting the twelve weeks of PFL.

 

More: Here’s What NY Dads Need To Know About Taking Paid Maternity Leave

New York's Paid Family Leave program is already pretty comprehensive. Since 2018, it has allowed employees to take time off, without losing compensation or their job, to:

- Bond with a child - newborn, adopted, or foster child
- Take care of a sick family member
- Assist when a family member in the military is deployed to another country

An eligible employee can take up to 3 months off from work and still receive 67 percent of their compensation (up to a cap of 67% of the current New York State Average Weekly Wage). If the 2025 budget passes, expectant moms will get an additional 40 hours to take care of their pre-labor needs. According to SILive.com, Gov. Hochul said,

There are too many moms who cannot take time off work to take care of themselves and that is part of the problem here, especially for minimum wage workers or hourly workers. A lot of mothers say, ‘I can’t go. I know I should, but I can’t take the time off work.’

More: $1000 A Month For Some Expectant Moms In New York

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