Time Off, With Pay?

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Even if every worker took the maximum time off, employees, not employers, would bear the cost. The Massachusetts bill would fund those 12 weeks of leave with a mandatory payroll tax of about $2 a week. Randy Albelda, an economics professor at the University of Massachusetts at Boston, says companies in the state now spend $370 million annually to support employee leaves by allowing workers to use vacation time or sick days to cover maternity or medical leave. The new paid-leave bill would eliminate much of that expense and could actually reduce other costs. "This will increase retention, and training and turnover are often the highest costs a company has," Albelda says. Steve Grossman, one of the few business owners to testify in favor of the paid-leave bill, has offered paid leave to the staff of his commercial-printing company for 17 years. "They may leave briefly, but when they come back, they work harder, longer and better than before," Grossman says.

Having quit her job, Thomas won't be eligible for paid leave if the Massachusetts bill passes. Thomas is disappointed but says she hopes to take advantage of it with her second child: "For me, it would have made all the difference."