ENGL327W and IDS493

1. Segmented Paid Family
Leave Research
SEANA LA GALA

2. Abstract
Paid family leave is income paid to a household by an
employer, the government, or insurance so a person or persons
can recover from a serious illness, care for a sick family
member, or care for and bond with a newborn or newly
adopted child. This research paper will advocate for paid family
leave. Its importance is not only for employers, the labor
market, and household health and well-being, but for the
children who will ultimately be affected by not having enough
bonding time with parents, witnessing intimate partner
violence, and being a part of the 6.0 percentage rate for infant
mortality rates. This topic is not only important to those with
children and employers, but to those who live in the United
States who may know and are affected by their neighbors,
friends, and coworkers.

3. About Paid Family Leave (PFL)
Paid family leave (PFL) policies provide a tremendously helpful few weeks for soon to be mothers and
fathers. As of right now, most workers have the ability to take advantage of the Family Medical Leave
Act which provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave, unless they have unused administrative or sick
leave accrued, allowing the employee to use that leave to be paid during their time with their new
family member(s). PFL oftentimes are especially helpful to those families who struggle with
competing work and responsibilities within the household. Persons with access to PFL have the ability
to bond with their new family members without the added stress of not being able to pay their bills,
not keeping their pre-leave positions, and not having minimal interruptions to their career.
There are currently 10 states, and Washington D.C. and the military forces that require, by law, paid
maternity and paternity leave (paid family leave). The United States is one of only two nations who
currently do not promote and provide paid family leave programs as a whole nation. However, there
are some states in the U.S. who have taken the first steps towards this initiative. California, being one
of them, has seen many benefits from their Healthy Families Act of 2004, which enacts paid family
leave. Paid family leave proves to be a positive strategy for a number of states throughout the U.S. By
allowing new families more time to acclimate to life as a family, the benefits provided to them will
determine the motivation of their work and the happiness and well-being of each household.

4. California’s PFL
California’s paid family leave provides up to six weeks of paid leave after a birth, adoption, or the need to take
care of a family member under certain circumstances. Baum and Ruhm’s study suggests that the paid leave
program in California raised the mother’s work probability of returning to work by 18.3 percentage points one
year after the birth of a child. This number is compared to the pre-PFL baseline of 80.2 percent. The studies in the
same research group suggests that mother’s worked 7.1 more weeks and 2.8 hours in each week during the
child’s second year of life, also. Because families are able spend paid time off with their families in the beginning,
they do not have to take their own accrued personal and sick time off the next year. This provides an increase of
18 and 11 percent growth rate to pre-PFL. This labor outcome is a positive change to pre-PFL policies.
Ultimately, the higher-leave taking that this policy allows, results in higher employment rates the quarter before a
mother’s due date and two quarters after the child is born. CA-PFL also proves to better measure leave taking
times in the workplace, allowing for better planning for the employers of expecting parents, both mother and
father. Thirdly, Baum and Ruhm’s study results also suggest that having paid family leave increases job continuity
for mothers. Although these benefits must be weighed with the program costs, which are determined on the
frequency of those who use the program, administrative expenses, and wages to be replaced. However, it is
important to remember that job continuity reduces hiring and turnover costs and preserve good employer–
employee matches and firm‐specific human capital (Baum & Ruhm, 2016). California, and likely the other 9 states,
do not need to be the only states benefiting from these labor market outcomes. Now, as we discussed labor
benefits, we will be discussing more drastic issues and what paid family leave can do to help the cause.

5. Preventing Partner and Family Violence
Ashley D'Inverno, Dennis E. Reidy, and Megan C. Kearns found that PFL may actually influence intimate partner
violence (IPV), reduce financial stress and any associated discord in the relationship, increases equal opportunity
parenting practices, and promotes a healthy development in youth due to child and parent bonding. In a person’s
lifetime, a significant amount of 37.3% of women and 30.9% of men in the United States experience contact
sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking by their partner. As seen in the evidence presented by Baum and
Ruhm, paid family leave policies have the potential to strengthen labor markets and economy, which is one of the
causes of IPV. PFL helps to support new parents by providing a feeling of safety due to income and job-protection
to bond with and care for a new child without interruptions to household income and conflict between career
and family responsibilities. According to D’Inverno, this bonding period could be invaluable in fostering positive
parenting skills and promoting healthy family lifestyles and relationships.
It has also been proven that taking a longer leave leads to certain parenting practices, such as breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding has also been linked to lower risk for child abuse and neglect (D’Inverno, Reidy, & Kearns, 2018).
With lower risks of children and household members being a witness of intimate partner violence, it stands to
reason that it reduces future household violence and breaks the cycle of abuse, mental and physical.

6. Infant
Mortality
Rates
According to Patton, to help workers maintain a healthy work–life balance,
governments and employers implement paid parental leave to retain workers
(particularly women), to promote gender equality, to boost fertility rates in
the situation of aging national populations, and also to enhance child and
maternal health.
Japan and Portugal have infant mortality rates ranging from 2.5 to
3.0 out of 1,000 deaths, making them the lowest infant mortality rate
countries. The United States has the highest infant mortality rate, which
stands at a large 6.0 deaths out of 1,000 infant births. Paid family leave
correlates with a variety of outcomes that have been found to affect infant
health. As discussed in D’Inverno’s article regarding intimate partner violence,
parents who are offered paid family leave are more likely to take more time
off to care for and bond with their infant child. This time off often leads to an
extended amount of time of breastfeeding and allows for better adherence to
well baby check-ups and immunization schedules. One simple change (paid
family leave) leads to many different positive outcomes for infant health
which may lead to the reduction of infant mortality rates. It is also important
to note that Patton references California’s paid family leave policy in their
article and verified that 90 percent of employers reported no major issues
and problems with the PFL policy (Patton, Costich, & Lidströmer, 2017).

7. Concluded
Findings
California, one of the states that require paid family leave, has
been researched in many cases such as this. The research
strongly suggests that paid family leave helps family households
in many ways. PFL reduces stress that is related to income and
job safety, reduces intimate partner violence which leads to a
reduction in mental and physical child abuse, promotes
breastfeeding and bonding with their children, and a reduction
in infant mortality rates. Ultimately, if the rest of the United
States were to follow the example of California and the other 10
states which promote and require paid family leave, our
country’s infant mortality rates should decrease from its high of
6.0 according to the research. Finally, paid family leave proves to
be a positive strategy for a number of states throughout the U.S.
By allowing new families more time with their children, the
benefits provided to them will lead to positive labor market
outcomes and positive households.

8. References
Baum, C., & Ruhm, C. (2016). The Effects of Paid Family Leave in California on Labor
Market Outcomes. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 35(2), 333-356.
D’Inverno, A., Reidy, D., & Kearns, M. (2018). Preventing Intimate Partner Violence
Through Paid Parental Leave Policies. Preventive Medicine, 114, 18-23.
Patton, D., Costich, J., & Lidströmer, N. (2017). Paid Parental Leave Policies And
Infant Mortality Rates In OECD Countries: Policy Implications For The United
States. World Medical & Health Policy, 9(1), 6-23.