Of the 21 high-income countries of the world, the US is the ONLY one without paid maternity leave.
Paid maternity leave benefits the health and development of the child and the health of the mother. And it protects women's work equality by securing their place in the workforce when they return.
The entire country benefits when children and families have a good head start.
Currently, about 40% of United States workers are ineligible for FMLA leave. Those excluded are often low-waged and minority women, compounding their disadvantages and perpetuating inequality. Moreover, the leave is unpaid, which limits access to the economically well-off. Over 22 months in 1999-2000, 3.5 million people needed leave but could not take it due to affordability.
America deserves paid maternity leave.