Family and Medical Leave in the U.S.: Incremental Policy and State Legislative Action 

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993 is the only federal policy that provides job-protected leave in the United States. However, FMLA leave is unpaid, and restrictive eligibility requirements preclude over 40 percent of the workforce from taking advantage of this law. Cognizant of the FMLA’s limitations, family and medical leave advocates supported the bill as moderate legislation that could be improved with later incremental changes. While such changes have not happened at the federal level, several states have passed their own leave laws that offer wage replacement, cover more workers, lengthen leave duration, and expand definitions of “family” for the purposes of leave. This report provides a comprehensive account of state legislative histories with regard to family and medical leave, pre- and post-FMLA, and considers whether such state action has realized the FMLA as incremental policy. State legislative histories suggest that, for most workers, family and medical leave has not been substantially expanded. However, recent increases in state legislative activity also suggest the issue is gaining momentum