As you know, thanks to activists and allies across Connecticut, this year lawmakers passed P.A. 19-25: An Act Concerning Paid Family and Medical Leave – one of the strongest paid leave programs in the country!
The new law creates the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Authority, a quasi-public agency, to administer the program. The Authority is led by a Board of Directors, which consists of 13 voting members, including the Labor Commissioner, Secretary of OPM, Commissioner of Administrative Services, and appointments by House and Senate leadership. The State Comptroller and State Treasurer serve as non-voting members of the Board.
Monthly meetings of the Board of Directors to implement paid leave began in October and are held every third Thursday of the month. Check out the complete meeting schedule here, as well as minutes from each meeting, here. All meetings of the Board are open to the public and Connecticut residents who care about a transparent and usable system of paid leave should attend!
Over the past few months, the Board has heard presentations from national paid leave experts Jeff Hayes of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research and Sarah Jane Glynn about the cost of the program and implementation in other states. In November, Board member and paid leave expert Molly Weston Williamson of A Better Balance presented a comprehensive outreach and stakeholder engagement plan to ensure Connecticut workers know what rights are available to them under the new law. The Board also prioritized their search for a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to run the Paid Family and Medical Leave Authority with the goal of filling the position by early next year.
The Campaign for Paid Family Leave is committed to ensuring that implementation of paid leave is accessible and transparent to all workers. We will continue to monitor the progress of the Authority and keep our followers, advocates, and activists updated on next steps and potential action items in 2020! Make sure to sign up to receive the Campaign’s action alerts and follow us on Facebook! Also, please check out and SHARE the Campaign’s resources on the new law here.
