Reaction coming in quickly after the Allegheny County Board of Health voted Monday in favor of the county's revised parental leave policy.
Employers with 15 or more workers would be required to provide 12 weeks of paid leave.
Critics say even by reducing the number of paid weeks and establishing requirements for how long full and part-time employees must work before they become eligible, it would be a disincentive for businesses to locate to Allegheny County.
Supporters say young families need time to bond without worrying about being rushed back to work.
Aden Halpern is the organizer of Pittsburgh United. He says he was excited to hear that the vote was unanimous.
“It’s a really important measure to address the urgent public health crisis that if affecting parents and babies in our county and the urgent need to fix the fact that we have insanely high black maternal mortality in the county, it’s one of the deadliest counties for a Black mother to give birth, so excited to see this,” said Halpern.
The proposal now goes now to county council for consideration. If it is passed by County Council, it then goes to County Executive Sara Innamorato’s desk to be signed.
If passed, it Allegheny County would be the first in Pennsylvania to establish paid parental leave. County Executive Innamorato released the following statement:
“I want to thank the Board of Health for taking this bold step towards a healthier Allegheny County for all. The science is clear: paid parental leave is a public health necessity for people who give birth, infants, and all new parents so they have the time to bond and heal in the critical earliest stages of a baby’s life.”
The County Executive continued: “This legislation will now go to County Council for their consideration and I urge them to move quickly. The Health Department received record amounts of feedback from the community supporting paid parental leave. The Health Department also heard feedback about how the bill could be strengthened and improved, and implemented several revisions to make it achievable in Allegheny County. We’ve been waiting for decades for federal or state action, while the rest of the world and much of the country moves forward with protecting families. I’m tired of waiting, and Allegheny County families are tired of waiting. They deserve better and I eagerly encourage Council to pass this bill and send it to me for my signature.”
