President Obama will announce a new effort Thursday to push Congress and states to require companies to give employees paid leave, part of a broader drive by the White House to address wage-related issues.
“[T]omorrow, President Obama will call on Congress to pass the Healthy Families Act, which would allow millions of working Americans to earn up to seven days a year of paid sick time — and call on states and cities to pass similar laws,” said Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser to the president, in a posting on the social media site Linkedin.
The president also will announce a plan to make it easier for states to adopt programs. Only California, New Jersey and Rhode Island currently offer paid family and medical leave, Jarrett said.
Obama will sign a presidential memorandum requiring that federal employees receive six weeks of paid sick leave after they have a child, according to Jarrett. He will call on Congress to give federal employees six weeks of paid administrative leave as well.
The White House has moved on several fronts in recent weeks to move its economic agenda independently of Congress. Last year, the president said all federal contracting would be subject to a $10.10 an hour minimum wage. The gesture was mostly symbolic since other laws force the average wage under contracting well above the federal minimum, currently set at $7.25.
The Labor Department, also, is working on new regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act intended to force businesses to pay more overtime. The new regulations would raise the pay cap under which employees can be declared exempt from being paid overtime, currently set at $23,000 annually.
