November 20, 2019
Online Informational Session Helps Parents Use the Nation’s Strongest Family Leave Law to Bond With Adopted Children
To honor National Adoption Awareness Month, New York State today announced a new resource to help employees understand their rights and use New York’s landmark Paid Family Leave to bond with a newly adopted child. A detailed webinar will explain how eligible, working New Yorkers can take job-protected, paid time off to bond with their child within 12 months of adoption. It also touches on the other qualifying events Paid Family Leave can be used for, which include bonding within 12 months of a child being born or fostered; caring for a family member with a serious health condition; or assisting when a spouse, domestic partner, child or parent is deployed abroad on active military service.
“When working parents open their hearts and homes to adoptive children, they both need time to bond,” Workers’ Compensation Board Chair Clarissa Rodriguez said. “New York Paid Family Leave provides critical protections and benefits that give new parents peace of mind that their jobs and finances are secure, so they can instead focus on their new children. This time together in the first year of adoption is vital to building strong families.”
The webinar will be presented on November 26, from noon to 1 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Early registration is encouraged as space is limited. Register here.
Additional Paid Family Leave Resources
The adoption webinar is part of New York’s ongoing campaign to educate workers and employers about New York Paid Family Leave, which went into effect on January 1, 2018. In addition to webinars, New York State offers complete details on Paid Family Leave at PaidFamilyLeave.ny.gov. Help is also available via a toll-free Paid Family Leave Helpline at (844) 337-6303. Both provide resources in languages other than English.
Paid Family Leave is employee-funded insurance that provides job-protected, paid time off from work to employees to care for family. In 2019, it provides up to 10 weeks off at 55% of an employee’s pay, up to a maximum of $746.41 per week. In 2020, eligible employees can take up to 10 weeks off at 60% of their pay, up to a maximum of $840.70. Benefits will continue to rise until 2021, when Paid Family Leave is fully phased in, at which time eligible employees will be able to take up to 12 weeks at 67% of pay, up to a cap. Retaliation and discrimination are prohibited, and neither citizenship nor immigration status is a factor in employee eligibility.
CONTACT: publicinfo@wcb.ny.gov