Opinion: Lawmakers can provide parental leave to all Texas workers

Whether through birth or adoption, families shouldn’t have the joy of welcoming a new child overshadowed by money problems. However, Texan parents of all backgrounds are often faced with an impossible decision: either prematurely leave their babies with a childcare provider –– if they’re lucky enough to be able to afford childcare –– or risk financial instability by leaving their jobs to care for their babies. This public challenge is so widespread that 74% of working Texans do not have access to paid family medical leave and 64% are unable to take unpaid protected leave.

Regardless of where we live, what we look like, or who we love, Texans know how important well-supported homes and parenting are to our children’s futures. We need a sensible, statewide solution to support the values we share for thriving families.

A bipartisan group of Texas legislators is beginning to respond to this systemic, anti-family dilemma through policymaking: paid parental leave. The Senate passed SB 222 by Republican Sen. Robert Nichols. It would provide 6 weeks of paid parental leave to state agency employees who birth or adopt a baby. In the other chamber, the House adopted 12 weeks of paid parental leave for their employees, and Chairman Will Metcalf’s HB 1580 proposed 12 weeks of paid parental leave. It is great to see leaders take steps to remedy this public challenge for the 143,000 state employees and families who would be better served with paid parental leave. Policymakers have an opportunity to build on this and extend paid parental leave to all of Texas’ 13.5 million workers and their children.

Representative Penny Morales Shaw has a solution. The Houston Democrat has filed a visionary, statewide paid parental leave bill. The Texas Family Act, HB 2604, would replace 100% of workers’ wages up to $1,000 per week for 12 weeks after the birth or adoption of a child. The Texas Family Act proposes to fund paid parental leave through an employer contribution of 15 cents for every $100 paid in wages. Every Texan estimates the program will provide paid leave to approximately 144,000 working parents in its first year. Currently, most small businesses struggle to provide paid family leave due to the cost of private short-term disability insurance premiums. The Texas Family Act would give small businesses the opportunity to offer a competitive benefit that improves employee retention at an affordable rate.

We know that Americans and Texans from a wide spectrum of backgrounds, family compositions, and political perspectives support paid family leave. National polls confirm Republicans, Democrats and independents support paid time off to care for a newborn baby or adopted child. Thirteen states and Washington, D.C. currently offer paid family medical leave to their working families including time to bond with a newborn baby or adopted child. Now, the question is whether or not Texas state elected officials will do the same and put our families and children first.

This bill cannot move forward without a committee hearing. Representative Angie Chen Button, long-time child well-being advocate and chair of the International Relations and Economic Development committee, should grant the Texas Family Act a public hearing to demonstrate that Texans are worth a statewide public solution.

From Nacogdoches to El Paso, across race, class, and faith, Texans value our children, families, and hard work. Texas can show the rest of the nation that these values do not conflict with one another. It’s time to center our shared values in state policy solutions and pass the Texas Family Act.

Posson is a senior policy analyst with Every Texan.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Opinion: Lawmakers should approve parental leave for all Texas workers