This commentary is by state Rep. Katherine Sims, D-Craftsbury, who also represents Albany, Glover and Greensboro.
No one should have to choose between caring for a loved one and earning a living. But this is a reality for 73 percent of people working in Vermont who do not have paid family leave through their jobs.
This year the House is taking action. We passed H.66 to create a paid family and medical leave insurance program that would guarantee 12 weeks of paid leave for Vermonters to care for new children or ailing relatives, cope with their own serious medical condition, grieve lost loved ones, or seek safety from domestic violence.
Funded by a 0.55% payroll tax split between employers and employees, the plan would allow all workers in Vermont to receive up to 90% of earned wages for up to 12 weeks. For an employee earning $50,000, the employee and the employer would each pay $137 for the year. Wage replacement for employees on leave would be paid out of the resulting state fund.
Paid family and medical leave programs positively impact the physical and mental well-being of adults and children. Consider that roughly two-thirds of Vermonters live in rural areas where employers are less likely to offer paid leave and residents must travel over three times farther to receive hospital care than their urban-dwelling peers.
When my first child was born at 35 weeks, he weighed 3.3 pounds and spent his first 12 days in the neonatal intensive care unit at UVM Medical Center, a two-hour drive from our home at the time in Newport. We were privileged to have health insurance that covered the cost of his care, but the added travel and distance from family and friends was another added strain during what was already a stressful time.
The proposed paid family and medical leave insurance program is a step toward more equitable health care access across the state and across income levels. Paid leave also reduces the chance that employees will break into their retirement benefits early, improving outcomes into the future.
The program improves the viability of small businesses, too, especially those in rural areas where they already face disproportionately larger hurdles. This program makes paid leave affordable for small businesses, allowing them to attract and retain qualified workers with benefits that rival those of larger employers.
Workers who get paid leave benefits are more productive and more loyal, ultimately saving employers money in turnover costs as well (see a collection of studies here).
H.66 is smart policy for rural towns and reflects our shared value of community care. Vermont’s population is aging and access to affordable end-of-life care is sparse, especially the more rurally one lives. Paid leave enables Vermonters to care for older community members to the benefit of the entire community.
Our current bargain is an undignified one for individuals and small businesses alike. Vermonters must choose between their financial security and their family, and that burden falls heaviest on parents, low-income families, Black and Latinx families, and families living in rural communities.
Small businesses can scrape by in a perpetual state of recruiting and training, or go broke trying to offer the kind of benefits that attract the workers they need.
Nobody should be forced to choose between caring for a family member or paying rent. It’s time now to empower families and small businesses across the state with access to affordable paid family and medical leave.
