Jerry Brown vetoes expansion of unpaid leave for new parents
Citing concerns about the potential liability for small businesses, Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday vetoed legislation to expand unpaid leave for new parents to bond with their children.
“As I understand, an amendment was offered that would allow an employee and employer to pursue mediation prior to a lawsuit being brought,” Brown wrote in his veto message. “I believe this is a viable option that should be explored by the author.”
Senate Bill 654, by Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, would have required businesses with at least 20 employees to offer workers six weeks of protected leave within the first year of a child’s birth, adoption or foster care placement. Workers also would have been guaranteed to maintain their health coverage during that time. They will still be eligible for the state’s paid family leave program offering partial wage replacement.
Existing job protections apply only to employees at businesses with 50 or more employees. The expansion would have covered another 6 percent of businesses and up to 2.7 million more workers, or 16 percent of the California workforce.
Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article105286576.html
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