Paid leave—including parental leave for new parents, medical leave to care for one’s own serious illness, and caregiving leave to provide care for loved ones—is a critical element of family economic security. Women’s labor force participation in the United States has played a key role in economic growth, yet it has also left millions of families to navigate the conflict between their care and labor market responsibilities, a problem that will only grow worse as the U.S. population ages. Six states plus Washington, DC have enacted paid leave laws, additional states and localities are considering paid leave legislation, and multiple policy proposals exist at the federal level as well. Equitable Growth is accelerating the growth of the knowledge base that informs policymaking at the local, state, and federal level to ensure that solutions to family caregiving challenges work for families, employers, and the economy as a whole.
Featured work
Paid sick time and paid family and medical leave support workers in different ways and are both good for the broader U.S. economy
January 25, 2022
January 25, 2022
Factsheet: What does the research say about the economics of paid leave?
April 22, 2021
April 22, 2021
Paid Family and Medical Leave in the United States: A Research Agenda
October 22, 2018
October 22, 2018
The economic imperative of enacting paid family leave across the United States
February 18, 2020
February 18, 2020
Paid family care leave is a missing piece in the U.S. social insurance system
June 10, 2019
June 10, 2019
Explore Content in Paid Leave150
The Impact of Paid Sick Leave Mandates on Women’s Employment, Income, and Economic Security
August 27, 2021
August 27, 2021
Coronavirus disruptions in family caregiving highlight the importance of investments in U.S. care infrastructure and paid leave
August 24, 2021
August 24, 2021
NBER Summer Institute 2021 Round-up: Week 3
August 2, 2021
August 2, 2021
Factsheet: What does the research say about the economics of paid leave?
April 22, 2021
April 22, 2021
Factsheet: What does the research say about care infrastructure?
April 15, 2021
April 15, 2021
Caregiving in a Pandemic: COVID-19 and the Well-being of Family Caregivers 55+ in the U.S.
April 7, 2021
April 7, 2021
Equitable Growth invests in research grants to explore the role of paid sick leave and paid family and medical leave amid the coronavirus recession
January 4, 2021
January 4, 2021
COVID-19 and Paid Leave: Assessing the Impact of the FFCRA
January 4, 2021
January 4, 2021
Access to Paid Leave during the Covid-19 Pandemic: Evidence from NYC
January 4, 2021
January 4, 2021
Did Paid Sick Leave and Family Medical Leave Ameliorate the Health and Economic Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic?
January 4, 2021
January 4, 2021
Factsheet: New study shows that emergency paid sick leave reduced COVID-19 infections in the United States
October 26, 2020
October 26, 2020
Wage discrimination and the exploitation of workers in the U.S. labor market
September 15, 2020
September 15, 2020
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