Although 163 countries provide guaranteed paid maternity leave for new mothers, the United States does not. In fact, this maternity leave statistic puts the US in the same boat with Lesotho, Papua New Guinea and Swaziland. Australia is the only other industrialized nation that offers no paid maternity leave for new mothers, but it does offer 12 months of unpaid maternity leave. So what does the US offer new moms today?
Let us examine the laws for pregnancy and maternity leave up close. The first federal law that you should be aware of is the Pregnancy Discrimination Act. This Act makes it illegal for employers to fire, refuse to hire, or deny a woman a promotion because she is pregnant. However, it provides no job protection to new parents on maternity leave.
The second federal law that you should be aware of is the Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which provides millions of workers with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected time off for maternity leave or recovery from illness.
If you happen to be so lucky, your company also may offer paid short term disability to help with your maternity leave and recovery from childbirth. Some companies are...
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