The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) is an important document regulating relations between employers, and employees, protecting people, and guaranteeing the accessibility of health services. This labor law requires covered employers to provide all workers with job-protected leave for medical and family reasons with continuation of health insurance coverage (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). The necessity of this document became obvious because of multiple causes presupposing the need for leave because of the reasons mentioned above. In 1984 the first draft of the legislation was created by the Women’s Legal Defense Fund (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). Later, the document, which transformed into the FMLA, passed with bipartisan support and was signed by President Clinton in1993 (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). Adoption of this law provided workers with additional protection and eliminated reasons for multiple fears linked to employment and health issues.
Several reasons influenced the creation of the legislation and its becoming one of the central laws protecting the rights of people. First of all, before 1993, no unified regulations were outlining all cases when employees could take leave because of family or health issues (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). For instance, in multiple situations, women had complexities with pregnancy leave or parental leave after the birth of a child (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). They could lose their health insurance coverage or had problems determining the days needed to look after the child and recover after childbirth (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). In most cases, employers had to decide on their own whether to give leave or not, which constituted a serious problem and infringed human rights (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). Under these conditions, the necessity to establish the legal framework regulating this sort of employee-employer relations was evident.
Adoption of the FMLA had a significant impact on healthcare and people’s quality of life. First of all, it provided women with more chances to recover after childbirth, not being afraid of penalties for a long leave (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). It contributed to the improvement in the nation’s health and reduced the number of complications (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). Second, statistics prove that parental leave contributes to improved health of infants, lower rates of visits to the hospital, and better psychological states of children (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). It can be viewed as a significant achievement of FMLA (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). Furthermore, medical leaves provided for serious health conditions or health conditions of family members help to avoid serious complications or chronic diseases because of the time that can be devoted to these issues (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). Altogether, FMLA became a facilitator of the positive change in the healthcare sphere.
Analyzing the law, multiple positive aspects available to people should be mentioned. The primary goal for designing the FMLA is to preserve the balance between work and family responsibilities allowing employees to take unpaid leave for a list of outlined medical and family reasons (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). Moreover, it promotes equal employment opportunities for men and women as the ability to take pregnancy and parental leaves help females to feel protected and avoid choosing between career and family (U.S. Department of Labor, n.d.). Another serious advantage is the positive influence on the nation’s health and the reduction in the number of untreated or chronic diseases (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). At the same time, following some relevant cases involving FMLA, the law managed to promote the positive change in relations between employers and employees and establish a new legal framework for better cooperation (“DaPrato v. Massachusetts Water Resources Authority,” n.d.). It helps to protect the interests of workers if some family of health issues emerge.
However, FMLA has several downsides and negative aspects that should also be considered. First of all, it might be pressing for employees who have to perform all tasks and duties instead of those who take a leave (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). Employers can make the remaining staff accept extra shifts to guarantee that the company can function (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). Moreover, in some cases, employers are in vulnerable positions, especially when FMLA is applied to one of the leading workers who cannot be replaced (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). For this reason, part-time or temporary employees should be hired to ensure there are no failures in the functioning of a unit (Tobin-Tyler et al., 2021). Under these conditions, FMLA might cause additional pressure on employers and precondition the need to look for other solutions to avoid the further deterioration of the situation.
Altogether, FMLA can be viewed as a critically important document regulating relations between employees and employers, and helping individuals to feel protected. The major reasons for its creation and adoption included the necessity to introduce equal career opportunities for men and women, improve the health of the nation, and ensure all individuals have the right to have leave when they have some health and family issues. The FMLA has multiple positive aspects and contributes to a better balance between work, rest, health, and other concerns. Under these conditions, it became an important step towards the establishment of a fair legal environment with similar opportunities for all people and their protection. The law is nowadays a critical part of the U.S. framework, and its observation is a must for all companies and firms.
References
DaPrato v. Massachusetts Water Resources Authority. (2019). Justia. Web.
Tobin-Tyler, E., Barton Laws, M., Franco, J., Jutkowitz, E., & Morton, S. (2021). State paid family and medical leave laws: Growth and gaps in coverage. Public Health Reports. Web.
U.S. Department of Labor. (n.d.). Family and Medical Leave Act. U.S. Department of Labor. Web.