MORGANTOWN, W. Va. (AP) - Eligible employees at Mon Health System will soon be offered 14 consecutive days of paid parental leave.
Mon Health System President and CEO David Goldberg announced in a news release that the new policy will take effect at the start of the new year.
“We recognize how precious and fleeting those early days are following a birth, adoption, or foster placement,” Goldberg said. “We want our employees who are expecting parents or caregivers to be able to focus on bonding with their children and attending to family responsibilities before transitioning back to work.”
WBOY-TV reports that if both spouses or partners are employed by Mon Health, each will be afforded the same benefit.
Morgantown-based Mon Health also operates Mon Health Preston Memorial Hospital and Mon Health Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital.
Congress passed a bill earlier this month giving the country’s 2.1 million government employees 12 weeks of paid parental leave as part of a defense bill that President Donald Trump signed into law.
But it still leaves about 80% of U.S. workers in the private sector with no access to paid family leave. The U.S. is one of a handful of countries that lacks a federal policy, at least for new mothers, leaving employers to decide whether to offer it.
“Research shows expanded parental leave poses many benefits for parents and caregivers, as well as the children under their care,” Goldberg said in a statement. “We are committed to making this a priority for our Mon Health family moving forward.”
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