Maternity leave

[HairOfTheDog]

I think if a business doesn't offer it to straight couples than gay couples shouldn't be entitled to it either. I think if a business does offer it to straight couples than gay couples should also be entitled to it. I think if a business only offers it to pregnant women than only pregnant women should be entitled to it. It's quite simple. Myself, I wouldn't give any of the bastards a paid leave.

I agree with you that it should simply be a matter of applying the same benefits equally to all employees/parents of the company, gay or straight.

But, part of the issue is Leave policies that focus on mothers aren't always equally applied to gay men who will be primary caregivers to surrogate babies, and paternity leave isn't always equally applied to female spouses of lesbians who have babies.

I have read about some companies moving from “paternity” and “maternity” leave though. Instead, they're switching to gender-neutral policies like “parental leave” and separating the time available to women to recover from birth from the time granted to the “primary caregiver”—male or female—to promote bonding. I see that as more of a benefits equalizer than a special privilege for gays.

For larger corporations with high profits and more ability to cover the duties of those on leave with current staff, those kinds of paid employee Leaves are more viable, and probably helps them to maintain good morale and and attract top notch employees with a kick-ass benefits package. Some of those larger and high-tech highly-profitable companies are the ones that have moved to paid parental leave already, based on what I've read.

Anyway, I support the push for more paid Leaves to U.S. employees conceptually. As a small business owner, I wouldn't want to see it be mandatory for all employers though; I think it could hurt some small businesses to the extent that closure would be required and thus contribute to more unemployment.