FMLA Archives | Gilbert McWherter Scott Bobbitt PLC

A Pioneer of the Family Medical Leave Act Dies

Marge Roukema was an eleven term congresswoman from New Jersey. She died on Wednesday at the age of 85. She is one of the little known but most significant figures in labor and employment law.

As a Republican member of Congress, she defied her party in the 1980s and became a driving force behind the Family Medical Leave Act. The FMLA provides unpaid leave for qualified employees if either the employee or certain family members have a serious health condition. Ms. Roukema was motivated by the loss of her son, Todd, to leukemia. Based on her experience with her deceased son, she believed that employees should not have to choose between losing their job and neglecting their family’s welfare.

As the legislation passed Congress, Roukema urged then-President George H. W. Bush not to veto the bill. In an Op-Ed, she wrote, “As society has changed, we have always adjusted our labor protection standards to meet the new circumstances.” President Bush vetoed the bill, however, on June 29, 1990.

Less than three years later, Congress again passed the FMLA. It became the first piece of legislation signed into law by President Clinton. American workers have been better off as a result.

Jenna Bush and the Family Medical Leave Act: The Case for Paid Leave

As we approach the end of 2013, we are finishing an anniversary. 2013 marks the 10^th anniversary of the Family Medical Leave Act. It was the very first bill signed into law by President Clinton. The signing occurred at a Rose Garden ceremony on January 20, 1993, the day he took office.

It is amazing how familial attitudes can change in just a couple of generations. The FMLA was an act that had long been desired by progressives and employee rights advocates. It provides for 12 weeks of unpaid leave for serious health conditions, including pregnancy. In other words, it was the first federal pregnancy leave act, though it certainly is more far reaching than that.

Congress had passed the FMLA prior to 1993. However, President H. W. Bush vetoed it. He said it wasn’t fair to large businesses. Remember that the FMLA only covers employers with at least 50 employees within a 75 mile radius of where the employee works. All other employees are just out of luck.

Now fast forward 10 years. President H. W. Bush’s granddaughter, Jenna Bush, is a new mother. She is also a correspondent for the Today Show. Recently she wrote the following on a blog:

Today is my first day back at work …I was extremely lucky to spend four full months on maternity leave. I have learned far too many women don’t have this time, due to loop holes to an outdated federal policy and sheer financial need.

What? It appears that one Bush has come around. Employee rights advocates have said for a long time that large employers, those who are able to do it, should be required to provide paid maternity leave. The FMLA is unpaid. Therefore, even many employees who qualify for its protections cannot financially take advantage of them. Jenna Bush recognizes this. She understands the hardship a working mother meets when faced with a choice of career or family. She understands a mother should not have to choose between the two. She understands that the time has come for the FMLA to be expanded and include paid leave for employees of the largest employers.

When President H. W. Bush vetoed the FMLA, he was on the wrong side of history. Ten years later, his granddaughter has it right. Here’s hoping Congress follows her lead.