Fort Wayne Proposing Paid Parental Leave
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowFort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry has announced a new policy to provide non-union city employees with paid parental leave. The policy will be presented to the Fort Wayne Common Council next week, with discussion and a possible vote taking place next month.
Under the new policy, birth and adoptive parents would be eligible for paid parental leave up to 120 hours. The leave would have to be taken within the first 12 weeks following the birth or adoption. Employees would also have to meet eligibility requirements for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.
Henry’s office says the new policy aims to support parents by giving them paid time off to bond with her new child and adjust to their new family situation.
"Fort Wayne has been recognized as a great place to raise a family," Mayor Henry said in a news release. "However, more can be done to strengthen families who choose Fort Wayne as their home. We hope this will encourage other employers in the area to consider offering similar support to their employees. We also believe this policy will help attract and retain top talent to both local government service and our community."
Henry’s office says the potential fiscal impact is expected to be less than $100,000 per year, if the policy were applied to all employees. Currently, the city only offers leave to birth mothers through short-term disability.
The announcement comes more than six months after Governor Eric Holcomb announced a paid parental leave policy for state employees, which went into effect in January.