SUPPORTING PAID PARENTAL LEAVE
NATCA has been working with Senate offices and signed onto a letter in support of parental
leave provisions in the FY 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) advocating for the
Federal Employee Paid Leave Act (H.R. 1534), which would grant 12 weeks of paid parental
leave in connection with the birth, adoption or foster placement of a new child; up to 12 weeks of
paid family leave to care for an immediate family member with a serious medical condition; 12
weeks of paid leave if they are unable to work due to a serious medical condition; and up to 12
weeks of paid leave for other purposes that qualify for unpaid leave under the Family and
Medical Leave Act (FMLA), including for certain military, caregiving and leave purposes.
Next Steps: NATCA has encouraged this language to be included in the FY 2020
NDAA, the annual defense policy bill. So far, this year's NDAA measure has been
stalled. As a result, the Senate Armed Services chairman is preparing a backup
measure in case the House and Senate are unable to reconcile their versions of the full
bill. This would be a "clean" version of the NDAA and not include any substantive
changes, such as the above proposal. GA staff will continue to provide updates.
Background: For years, NATCA has been advocating on Capitol Hill for parental leave. In
2017, NATCA signed onto a similar letter endorsing the Federal Employees Paid Parental
Leave Act of 2017, to provide federal employees six weeks of paid leave in connection with the
birth, adoption, or foster placement of a child.
