Senator Hassan, Colleagues Call On Administration to Improve Communication about Federal Paid Leave Policies

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan and other members of the bipartisan, bicameral Paid Leave Working Group called on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to update its information on the paid parental leave policies available to federal employees. The group pointed out that OPM handbooks and webpages haven’t been updated since 2019 – before the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act of 2019 (FEPLA) was signed into law, which included a provision cosponsored by Senator Hassan to provide 12 weeks of paid parental leave to federal employees.

The group highlighted findings in a recent report from the Government Accountability Office about paid leave policies for federal employees and requested updates on how OPM plans to effectively communicate these changes in paid leave policies for federal employees.

“The report … detailed that perhaps the most important communication channels, the public-facing webpages of the selected agencies, ‘did not reflect current paid parental leave policies,’” the lawmakers wrote. “Even worse, [OPM’s website] includes a handbook on paid leave that is nearly a decade out of date and no fact sheets on FEPLA.”

“We implore OPM to take action immediately and follow the recommendations of the GAO report,” the lawmakers concluded.

The bipartisan, bicameral Paid Leave Working Group also includes Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Bob Casey (D-PA), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Todd Young (R-IN), and Representatives Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), Stephanie Bice (R-OK), Colin Allred (D-TX), Julia Letlow (R-LA), Mariannette Miller-Meeks, M.D. (R-IA), and Haley Stevens (D-MI).

Senator Hassan’s push to update paid leave policies for federal employees is part of her ongoing efforts to expand paid leave policies. Senator Hassan supported and helped pass into law the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act of 2019, which provides 12 weeks of paid parental leave to federal employees, and last year helped pass into law her bipartisan measure to provide parental leave parity for Reserve and National Guard members. Senator Hassan is also a co-sponsor of the FAMILY Act, which would ensure that all Americans have access to paid family and medical leave, and joined colleagues in reintroducing the Healthy Families Act, which would allow workers to use paid sick leave to stay home when they are sick or to care for a sick family member.

The full letter is available HERE and below:

Dear Director Ahuja,

A new paid parental leave benefit was authorized for most federal civilian employees through the Federal Employee Paid Leave Act of 2019 (FEPLA). The Joint Explanatory Statement accompanying the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 directed the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review the status of federal paid parental leave, including the new benefit. The GAO’s report and its findings and recommendations became public in January 2024.

The report revealed some encouraging news about parental leave benefits for federal civilian employees. In the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the three agencies selected for review, the GAO found “no significant obstacles to employees using paid parental leave” and that these agencies were using several different channels to communicate with their employees about the benefit. However, the report also detailed that perhaps the most important communication channels, the public-facing webpages of the selected agencies, “did not reflect current paid parental leave policies.”

The report also found that OPM’s Leave Administration webpage is out of date as well. Even worse, the page includes a handbook on paid leave that is nearly a decade out of date and no fact sheets on FEPLA. We are deeply concerned that when asked about this, OPM officials said they had not completed updating the Handbook on Leave and Workplace Flexibilities for Childbirth, Adoption, and Foster Care because “they had competing priorities and limited staff available.” In our view, this explanation is inadequate to justify this long delay, and it is essential that OPM prioritize updating its handbook.

We are grateful that according to the data, 55% of federal employees aged 40 and younger cited access to paid parental leave as a reason to remain in the federal government. We also recognize that the agencies selected for this report have begun updating their websites to reflect the correct information on these benefits. Yet, with greater awareness and information provided by OPM, we are confident that this number would be higher.

We implore OPM to take action immediately and follow the recommendations of the GAO report. Although OPM plans to have the guidance updated “by the end of 2024,” we stress that as FEPLA has now passed its fourth anniversary of enactment, this deadline should be seen as a floor and not a ceiling. In addition to your response to this letter, we request that OPM provide a status update to us by July 31, 2024 on actions taken on this matter. OPM must prioritize updating its 2015 handbook and associated fact sheets on its “Leave Administration” webpage to include current and accurate paid parental leave information as soon as possible.

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