New Jersey is one of two states that offers paid family leave. A study, conducted by the Center for Women and Work at Rutgers, finds that paid leave results in positive economic outcomes for working families, businesses and the public as a whole.

According to Pay Matters: The Positive Economic Impacts of Paid Family Leave for Families, Businesses and the Public,women who use paid leave are 93 percent more likely to return to work within 9 to 12 months after having a baby.

“Without leave, women are more likely to disconnect from the workforce. There are implications for this disconnection both in terms of their own wages as well as for their employers bottom line,” said Study Author Linda Houser.

“Women who take paid leave for 30 or more days are 54 percent more likely to have wage increases in the year following a child’s birth than women who take no leave at all,” said Houser. “We can now link paid family leave to greater labor force attachment and reduced spending by businesses in the form of employee replacement costs.”

Women who take paid leave also are 39 percent less likely to receive public assistance and 40 percent less likely to receive food stamps after the birth of a child, according to the study.

“This, of course, compares to those who returned to work with no leave at all,” said Houser. “We’re looking at rates of 15 percent for public assistance receipt after the birth compared to 26 percent for both unpaid leavers and those who take no leave.”

 

“By allowing workers to take paid time off to recover from illness or care for a new baby saves precious government and taxpayer resources,” said Houser.

Currently California, Hawaii, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island have created disability programs that allow women to recover some lost wages during and immediately after pregnancy. California and New Jersey have passed laws to provide an additional six weeks of paid family leave. Additionally, ten states have recently considered paid family leave programs.

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