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Paid Parental Leave for Feds: Good Idea or Election Year Pandering?

Bereavement Leave

Bank Examiner
OCC
Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:37 AM

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If Congress wants to get votes during this election year, how about a leave program that - sooner or later - all employees can use? How about 3 days of bereavement leave for the death of an immediate family member? ight now, we are allowed to take sick leave for travel, funeral arrangements, and the funeral itself.

I am facing the imminent death of my brother from cancer and am currently on FMLA/LWOP caring for him so I'll have AL to take after he passes. I need time available to help my mom thru the next stage of our grief. (I used up my SL and AL balances last year when I was out recovering from back surgery and am trying to get my balances back where they were. Happily, I can afford LWOP for awhile.) Bereavement leave is something everyone will eventually want to have available, not just something for the "fertile few."

Re: Bereavement Leave

Are you serious?
DoD
Fri Jun 20, 2008 9:06 AM
With the world population approaching 7B people, I don't think just a "few" people are having children. Just like death, giving birth is a nature process affecting nearly every family. I'm very sorry for your immanent loss, but please don’t make these generalizations just because you happen to not be having children at your stage of life (what ever that may be).

BTW – I don’t support either measure. The Fed is very generous with SL and although there are always special cases, most people are properly covered. I would support, however, short term disability for those that fall between the cracks.

Re: Bereavement Leave

DOI employee/Union officer
BOR
Fri Jun 20, 2008 9:28 AM
Are you eligible for Leave Donation? Have you considerd that option? I donate leave every year to folks as I can't use it all. My husband works in the private sector so he doesn't get vacations. I would gladly donate leave to your cause.

Re: Bereavement Leave

gor
take care of your own
Fri Jun 20, 2008 9:42 AM
Why should I be forced to support (financial) you? Try this: be responsible for yourself.

Re: Bereavement Leave

Salior
DON
Sun Jun 22, 2008 5:06 PM
Paid parental leave is coming-like it or not. The biggest factor for this change is the very large number of young professional women entering the workforce. They will demand it. Employers, wanting to attract and keep the brightest and best, will be forced to offer it or watch the competition offer the benefit and attract the best professional workers. The government, in stiff competition with the private sector for doctors, lawyers, MBAs, nurses, engineers and scientists will have to give parents (read young women) the additional leave they will demand. This is only the beginning of "child friendly" policies. Look for government on-site child care, extended "sabaticals" of a year or two with a right to come back to the same job AND no loss of promotion potential, massive tax credits for all child care costs, government paid fertility treatments (costing thousands), mandatory co-worker training and education to ensure that we all support this approach and stiff fines for violators

Re: Bereavement Leave

HR
DoD
Mon Jun 23, 2008 8:28 AM
DON, you sound so sure of yourself. Hillary was just as sure she would win the Dem nomination, too. Don't count on all those benefits you describe coming to the Fed world. Demanding and getting are two different things. You and I, nor the rest of the taxpayers in this country can afford it. A short term disability program is the most likely way to go, IF any action comes as a result of this measure.

Re: Bereavement Leave

Nameless, Faceless Nobody
DOD
Tue Jun 24, 2008 11:07 AM
HR/DoD: You were a bit rough on Salior. It may or may not happen just as he described, but the need for Civil Service to morph from white, middle-aged male goes to work and mother stays home values to supporting the workforce, male and female, who want and need to both earn a living and partake in nurturing their families is upon us.

I look around at my current and previous commands.The women who have gotten "ahead" are very rarely mothers. In this department only two are even married: they have careers instead. Most of the men who got ahead and have marriages and families had a wife who stayed home until the kids were grown. But they have careers and didn't take part in the daily care of the kids.

The workforce coming in wants both. Both partners want/need to work and both want to nurture their children. I think it is a good change for our society and may, more than anything else, help slow down the broken families. It is a good investment in our future to let them.

Re: Bereavement Leave

HR
DoD
Thu Jun 26, 2008 12:15 PM
Nameless, rough--no, real--yes. This country's government is going broke and citizens just want more and more from it, but don't want to do their part. I am female, head of my department and have been in Federal service over 30 years. Married, divorced and raised two children. Leave donation was unheard of when my children were born. I have over 1500 hours of SL and get my 208 use or lose every year. I can't find the time to use it. Employees just need to pull themselves up by the bootstraps and stop waiting for someone else to take care of them. With a little self-discipline and a strong work ethic it really is possible.

Paid Parental Leave for Feds

Supv. Contract Specialist
Internal Revenue Service
Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:47 AM

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Please don't misunderstand, I'm all for increasing benefits for Federal workers. There's been enough erosion of benefits; it's time for the pendulum to swing the other way. Having said that, let's not kid ourselves as to who will actually pay for such a benefit. The fact is, most employees who are temporarily taken out of a given work unit will not be replaced, even on a temporary basis. Let's be real folks. It takes infinitely longer to get a replacement body in a cubicle than the length of time the benefiting employee will be away. Besides, most such employees wouldn't be replaced, anyway. So who's paying the freight? The remaining employees, that's who...and at no extra cost to the Government. This is all political posturing.

Paid Leave for Parents

Finance Management Specialist
USDA
Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:52 AM

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While I struggled when I was younger to cover my 12 weeks (maximum allowed) of maternity leave with accrued sick leave and annual leave (no donated leave at that time) I think the relaxing of the rules for new parents is great. HOVER, I would rather the congress and the senate gave me my social security! I paid into SS for years before giving almost 30 years to the government. My annuity is nothing wonderful and I won't get my fair share of SS. Paying into the Fed Retirement system and/or social security - its all goes to uncle sam, so why not give me credit for it.

Paid Parental Leave;

Manager (retired)
VA
Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:52 AM

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This is a bad idea all the way around. In addition to being an unnecessary waste of tax funds and an impediment to most agencies in the performance of their core missions it emphasizes the difference between the general taxpaying citizen and the civil servant. The more differences that voters see between themselves and civil service employees the easier it will be to downsize and contract the jobs of government employees. We are a very small minority in the general population; it would be better not to be a hated minority as well.

Paid Parental Leave

Federal Employee
USDA
Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:54 AM

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I don't think it is a very responsible thing for the tax payers to have to pay for extra paid leave for Government Employees! There are people in the work force that don't even have sick leave or any benefits!! Every one thinks Federal Employees are entitled to all the extras even though they are very high paid in comparision to any one else short of Over Paid CEO's.

Paid Parental Leave for Feds

Mechanical Engineer, retired
LANTNAVENGNAVFACCOM
Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:55 AM

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Sufficient A/L leave is provide already! It is ludicrous to add more expense to taxpayers. And the same comment on Bereavement Leave! Ridiculous!

Paid Parental Leave

Federal Employee
USDA
Fri Jun 20, 2008 8:57 AM

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I don't think it is a very responsible thing for the tax payers to have to pay for extra paid leave for Government Employees! There are people in the work force that don't even have sick leave or any benefits!! Every one thinks Federal Employees are entitled to all the extras even though they are very high paid in comparision to any one else short of Over Paid CEO's.

Total Comments: 101
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