Senate Passes Paid Family Leave Bill

Senate Passes Paid Family Leave Bill

By a 21-15 vote, the state Senate on Monday passed the Paid Family Leave Bill, which would allow employees to apply for leave to care for a sick relative, a newborn or a newly adopted child. The bill would grant workers up to two thirds of their pay, to a maximum of $525 a week, for up to six weeks.

The bill, A-873, now goes to Gov. Jon Corzine, who has said he will sign it.

The bill would affect all private and government employers, including school districts, that are subject to the state’s unemployment compensation law. The benefit would be funded through an annual $33 deduction from workers’ paychecks.

NJSBA Position NJSBA’s policy states that benefits should be negotiated locally, and should not be granted to employees through legislative action. NJSBA has argued that school districts must provide substitute staff to replace workers who are not at their jobs, and the increased use of substitute teachers would undermine the quality of education provided in the classroom.

The bill provides that the collection of an assessment on employees to pay for family temporary disability leave benefits will begin Jan. 1, 2009 and that the payment of family leave benefits will begin July 1, 2009. During 2009, the bill will raise revenues necessary to pay the benefits through an assessment of 0.09 percent of the first $27,000 of each worker’s wages.