[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 13024]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               FEDERAL EMPLOYEES PAID PARENTAL LEAVE ACT

  (Mrs. MALONEY of New York asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Madam Speaker, with Mother's Day and 
Father's Day behind us, it's time for us to practice what we preach. If 
we truly believe in the value of family, then we need to value the work 
that families do.
  U.S. workers, unlike most workers worldwide, do not have the right to 
take paid time off to care for the birth of a new child. That is why 
the House should offer a model to the rest of the country by passing 
the Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act when it comes to the 
floor today. This bill provides 4 weeks of paid time off for all 
Federal employees to care for a new child.
  This landmark bill will be the first to recognize that parents need 
their earnings, even as they need time off, to care for their new 
child.
  Congress's action on family values should more than match its 
rhetoric. We should be the role model for all employers.
  According to a Harvard study, the U.S. ranks 169th in the world in 
terms of providing paid time off. We are tied with Swaziland. Tom Davis 
is bipartisan and has been a cosponsor for 10 years. Let's pass it 
unanimously in a bipartisan recognition of family values.

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