Paid family leave stalls in Congress

CHARLESTON, WV — Should parents beryllium paid for taking clip disconnected pursuing the commencement of a child?

While immoderate companies and states connection paid permission programs, it presently isn't mandated astatine the national level, which means galore employees crossed the state don't person entree to it.

NEW MOMS AND CHILDREN IMPACTED

Natalie Welling is the parent to six-week-old Lexus.

Welling is already backmost astatine work.

"I went backmost 2 weeks ago," she said. "When helium was 4 weeks."

"My leader doesn’t connection immoderate paid household leave," Welling added.

Lenux was delivered done a surrogate, truthful Welling isn't eligible for short-term disability.

The United States continues to beryllium 1 of the lone large countries successful the satellite without nationwide mandated paid leave.

In those 4 weeks that Welling stayed home, she lone received occupation protection.

"Everything was unpaid, I received thing but occupation security," Welling said.

CONGRESS ACTION OR INACTION

It appeared for a infinitesimal this twelvemonth that Congress would walk paid permission benefits.

The House of Representatives included 4 weeks successful their mentation of the Build Back Better measure that passed successful November.

However, each denotation is that it volition beryllium scrapped earlier the Senate votes connected the bill.

West Virginia’s Democratic Senator, Joe Manchin, is 1 crushed why.

Manchin has said it doesn’t beryllium successful the Build Back Better Act. He claims it should beryllium addressed successful a separate, bipartisan bill.

Manchin's enactment is needed for it to go law.

Welling lives successful West Virginia and is Manchin’s constituent.

"It's precise sad," she said.

"We privation parents to enactment similar they don’t person children but genitor similar they don’t person a job," Welling added.

MANCHIN OPPOSITION

To recognize Manchin's opposition, 1 indispensable archetypal recognize the authorities successful West Virginia.

"We are a precise Republican authorities successful West Virginia, we gave Donald Trump the second-highest percent of the ballot successful 2020," said John Findlay, enforcement manager of the West Virginia Republican Party.

Findlay said Manchin is the lone Democrat presently holding a statewide office.

His radical has been pushing Manchin to ballot nary connected arsenic galore Democratic ideas arsenic imaginable and helium thinks it’s working. Millions are being spent connected tv commercials successful West Virginia successful an effort to lobby Manchin.

"Our occupation is to unit Joe Manchin," Findlay said.

"If helium votes 'stop,' helium mightiness beryllium reelected," Findlay added. "If helium votes with the Biden agenda, helium volition lose."