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Family and Medical Leave Act Protections for Part-time Workers Act of 2016

H.R. 5496 · 114th Congress · Jun 16, 2016 · Lineage

A BILL

To extend protections under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to part-time workers.

Section 1 Short title; findings

(a)
Short title— This Act may be cited as the “Family and Medical Leave Act Protections for Part-time Workers Act of 2016”.
(b)
Findings— Congress finds the following:
(1)
According to a 2012 survey by Abt Associates commissioned by the Department of Labor, only 59 percent of employees are eligible for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.).
(2)
The requirement that employees work 1,250 hours for an employer in the previous year (roughly 24 hours per week) to be eligible for job-protected unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.) excludes many part-time workers from the Act’s protections.
(3)
Low-wage workers are less likely than other workers to have access to job-protected leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.).
(4)
Part-time workers are more than three times as likely as full-time workers to hold low-wage jobs.
(5)
Low-wage jobs are often characterized by high turnover rates and significant variability in work hours, both of which make it difficult to meet the 1,250 hours requirement under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.).
(6)
Two-thirds of part-time workers are women. Because women still shoulder a disproportionate share of caregiving responsibilities, these workers are likely to also have a disproportionate need for job-protected, unpaid leave to fulfill these responsibilities.
(7)
Some low-wage workers are working multiple jobs to make ends meet, but their eligibility for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.) is determined by only by their work for a single employer.
(8)
The survey conducted for the Department of Labor in 2012 found that reducing the hours of service requirement to 780 hours would result in a nearly 4-percent increase in the percentage of employees who are eligible for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.).
(9)
Removing the requirement that employees work 1,250 hours in the previous year to qualify for coverage under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.) will greatly expand access to unpaid leave for the most vulnerable workers.

Sec. 2 Elimination of hours of service requirement for FMLA leave

(a)
Amendment— Section 101(2)(A) of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611(2)(A)) is amended to read as follows:

“(A) In general—The term “eligible employee” means an employee who has been employed, either as a full-time or part-time employee, for at least 12 months by the employer with respect to whom leave is requested under section 102.”

(b)
Effective date— The amendment made by subsection (a) shall take effect beginning on the date that is one year after the date of enactment of this Act.