The Family and Medical Leave Act applies to all public agencies and to private sector employers with 50 or more employees. Family Leave Insurance provides partial wages when people need to take time from work to care for a newborn or newly adopted child, to care for a seriously ill parent, child, or spouse, or to recover from their own illness. Employers would pay an equal amount. The five weeks of paid leave would cover all workers including those who work for companies with less than 50 employees. Support for Family Leave Insurance Cuts Across Demographic Groups Strong majorities of men and women of all ages support family leave insurance.
Support is high among all income groups.
Party Lines Support for family leave insurance is weakest among Republicans, especially Republican men. Support remains constant or increases in all major demographic groups except Republicans when a payroll tax is mentioned. Opponents argue that extra money in Unemployment Insurance trust funds should be refunded to businesses or saved for future periods of high unemployment, and that adding new benefits will require business tax increases in the future. The most effective arguments for family leave insurance are enabling workers to care for family members and protecting a worker's job during a family emergency. Allowing workers to care for a seriously ill parent and giving parents time with newborn babies were the messages with the highest positive responses, both from those who initially supported and those who initially opposed family leave insurance.