In July, the DC Council recessed for the summer, leaving business unfinished on the Universal Paid Leave Act. At the time, the Washington Post's Aaron Davis reported that parents should "go ahead and have that baby — paid family leave isn’t coming to D.C. soon," a burdensome proposition when hundreds of thousands of hardworking people in the District lack access to the kind of lifeline supports paid family and medical leave programs provide when welcoming a new child or dealing with a serious medical condition. While legislative progress on paid leave was put on hold during recess, DC residents responded today, September 20th - the first day of legislative meetings for the fall session - by sharing why they couldn’t so easily do the same with their lives. Every day of delayed action on paid leave has dire consequences for DC families - it's time to #LeadOnLeaveDC!
> > > Check out the DC Paid Leave "While You Were Out" memos on the Councilmembers' doors as they returned from recess! < < <
`
Dear DC Council:
Welcome back from recess!
While you were out, my partner was diagnosed with thyroid cancer at 27 years old and needed surgery that required a few weeks of recovery. She had access to paid medical leave, but I had no paid family leave as a caregiver. Even with insurance, her surgery and follow-up care cost a whopping $11,000. Nobody should have to go without their income during a time like this. - Meagan, Ward 3
_______________________________________
While you were out, my doctors ran more tests to confirm that my worst nightmare: the brain tumor they’ve been monitoring for two years has spread. On a part time salary with no paid medical leave and a teenage daughter to support, I still don’t know how I’m going to afford treatment. - Kim, Ward 7
While you were out, my wife and I welcomed our first child. Neither of our jobs provide paid family leave so I returned to work the Monday after my daughter was born. I shouldn’t have to miss out on the most magical – and developmentally critical – moments in my child’s life to provide for her. - Roger, Ward 1
While you were out, I was struck by a bus while in a crosswalk not far from here (crossing with the right of way, mind you). I was unable to walk for 6 weeks. Even with family support and health insurance, my medical bills were outrageous. Before this, it never would’ve occurred to me to ask if an employer provided paid medical leave. Now I know. - (Name redacted for privacy, DC Resident)
The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of MomsRising.org.
MomsRising.org strongly encourages our readers to post comments in response to blog posts. We value diversity of opinions and perspectives. Our goals for this space are to be educational, thought-provoking, and respectful. So we actively moderate comments and we reserve the right to edit or remove comments that undermine these goals. Thanks!