Unexpected health complexities often prevent employees from average performance and urge them to leave their jobs. The other issue is the need to care for a newborn child and devote to this all day long, restricting an ability to earn money from regular shifts. One of the policies that exist in the US for preventing workers from leaving their positions due to family issues such as health problems of the close ones and childbirth is Paid Family Leave. The program is operable in several states, such as Massachusetts, New York, and Washington, which websites dedicated to the policy are discussed in the paper. The program seems to be effective for providing financial help for taxpayers, yet it should be evaluated more thoroughly for an empirical conclusion.
The first question that needs to be discussed is the financial side of the policy, namely, how it is funded. Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ (n.d.-a) website declares that the source of monetary support for Paid Family Leave is “employer and employee contributions” (para. 2). It is described more precisely in the subsection devoted to the information about the wages and their impact on the number of benefits given to an individual. The program is state-guided and relies on employer and employees inputs for its realization, not on the federal government. It is clarified that “wages include salaries, hourly pay, and stipends; cash tips of more than $20 and non-cash tips; commissions and bonuses; overtime, vacation, or sick pay” (Commonwealth of Massachusetts, n.d.-b, para. 3). There are also requirements that employees work for a definite period and earn a particular sum in an organization to apply for the program. So, the party responsible for the fee of the Paid Family Leave is the employer who should compensate the cost of the program in their company while the amount of pay depends on the employee’s wages.
Next, it is essential to elaborate on the political leanings of the implementation of the program in the mentioned states. As such, Massachusetts’ website does not seem to express any ideas that would lead someone to conclusions about the ideological basis behind the Paid Family Leave policy. In contrast, New York’s informative content contains several marks that the state organization is most likely to be of socialist political orientation. For example, one of the first blocks of text that guides a user through the website informs them about protecting workers’ rights relevant to the program (Paid Family Leave NY, n.d.-b). This piece accentuates the safety of employees by guaranteeing them the ability to keep their job positions and receive the payments defined by the policy. Additionally, it communicates the information about the right to complain about the ill management of the required procedure and discrimination (Paid Family Leave NY, n.d.-b). In Washington, the program focuses on the responsibilities and possibilities for employers rather than employees (Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave, n.d.-b). Thus, while Massachusetts has no definite political inclinations, New York’s policy is social, and Washington’s is liberal.
Furthermore, the conception of “family” is central to the policy under discussion. First, Massachusetts’ program version does not specify what family mentioned in the description of the aid means. However, it is mentioned that one can have a paid leave when they need to assist their family members, including veterans (Commonwealth of Massachusetts). New York has the most precise and inclusive definition of family among the states discussed in the paper. For example, it is stated that “mothers and fathers, including same-sex parents, can take job-protected, paid time off to bond with their newborn within the first 12 months of the child’s birth” (Paid Family Leave NY, n.d.-a, para. 1). It is also demonstrated in the website that adopted children constitute the family as well; there are specific subsections for the various types of family. Washington provides the list of the following individuals as the members of a family: “spouses and domestic partners, children (biological, adopted, foster or stepchild), … legal guardians …, siblings, grandchildren, grandparents …, son-in-law and daughter-in-law (Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave, n.d.-a). Thus, the three states approach the concept differently in their policies.
Since the details of the policy and its representation in various states have been discussed, it is necessary to make a note about the trustworthiness of the used sources of information. The websites mentioned earlier are governmentally sponsored and controlled, which could be seen from the domain “gov” after the address of each source. They are primarily subsections of the states’ official websites, with the exception of New York: this source is dedicated to Paid Family Leave policy, yet it is also governmental. Moreover, these articles have verifications that they are written by authorized individuals for the citizens of the corresponding states. Furthermore, it could be observed that the content is well-written, precise formulations are used, and no grammatical errors might be detected, denoting the official nature of the presented information. Finally, the pages concerning the policy often reference states’ law and other relevant certified documentation. Thus, one might safely declare that all the sources in the paper are accredited and can be trusted.
Finally, it is appropriate to analyze the congruency of the information about Paid Family Leave with social work values. As such, the policy addresses the issues of people in need and provides satisfying financial aid in critical situations. Next, it could be seen that most of the implications of the program attempt to bring awareness about social injustice and abolish it in existing companies. Moreover, the states have a bureaucratic apparatus for inspecting the organization about the frauds and oppression concerning the payments. Furthermore, Paid Family Leave guarantees that there is a dialogue between employee and employer, in which the first one is an important actor in the process of receiving the fees. Hence, human relationships are established through the connection between these groups of people. Additionally, the policy brings integrity into the companies by providing them with the ability and responsibility to adhere to high moral standards and keep their workers in a healthy social environment. The last important notion is that competent professionals administer the policy since each website makes it easy for workers to gain information and use the effective tools for application.
To conclude, Paid Family Leave is an implemented policy in the US that provides workers with the right to receive payments when they have to take care for their family and keep their jobs. The realization of the program was present in three states: Massachusetts, New Your, and Washington. Although there are several differences in the political leaning among the states and the concepts of families that they use, the meaning of the program is the same.
References
Commonwealth of Massachusetts. (n.d.-a). Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) overview and benefits. Mass.Gov. Web.
Commonwealth of Massachusetts. (n.d.-b). Wage contributions & reporting for Paid Family and Medical Leave. Mass.Gov. Web.
Paid Family Leave NY. (n.d.-a). Bonding leave for the birth of a child. Paid Family Leave. Web.
Paid Family Leave NY. (n.d.-b). Your rights and protections. Paid Family Leave. Web.
Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. (n.d.-a). Find out how paid leave works. Web.
Washington State’s Paid Family and Medical Leave. (n.d.-b). Your role and responsibilities. Web.