Family Medical Leave Act Essay

The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 was established as a requirement for employers to provide leave for their employees when tending to family or medical emergencies. This act guarantees that employees won’t be fired or replaced while away from work due to injury, serious health conditions, childbirth, or family tragedies. The Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 currently gives employees twelve weeks of unpaid leave. The Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 (F,MLA) should grant employees twelve weeks of paid leave instead because it would better assist low-income employees that lack financial resources, prevent families from going into debt, and it lessens the amount of stress on employees. According to the Population Reference Bureau, in 2011

While on a leave of absence individuals are often stressed – a mental state of emotional strain resulting from a demanding or adverse circumstance- because they are suffering from a serious health problem or are caring for a family member with a serious health condition. If financial stress were no longer a “stressor” because their leave is paid it would keep them from having to worry about that. That in turn will create a better employee because stress would not affect their work performance, or cause them to miss more work than they have to due to stress being the root of other ailments that may arise, such as: “Common colds, slower healing, sleep dysfunction, heart disease, depression, ulcers and other stomach problems, back, neck, and shoulder pain. Altogether, the Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) is a great policy overall as it allows employees to take the time to take care of their health or the health of their loved one. The only thing that would make it better, is if they gave employees paid leave instead of the twelve weeks of unpaid leave they are currently receiving. This change would help low-income employees with limited resources, prevent families from going into debt, and lessen the amount of stress put on an