Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Maternity Leave Across the Globe - Prepare to have your mind BLOWN!

Oh I just HAD to share this gem!!

A Facebook friend just posted this and I am yet again awed at the staggering discrepancy between our own 'great' nation and other nations around the world when it comes to the benefits - nay, rights - provided to working families.

Being pregnant makes you aware of so many interesting things about life and existence and parenthood and all that. Most especially as a female, the fascinating - disgusting! - lack of respect for the family unit  when it comes to paid time off for mothers is simply mind boggling. (The family unit, which we as a super-conservative country seem to praise from the hilltops! What gives?!)

Take a look at the other countries around the world treat their pregnant women/new moms. In the US, we get a whopping ZERO weeks of paid leave. Yes, friends. Good ole FMLA allows us to take off something like 10 weeks of UNpaid leave. Great if you have zero debt, no car payments, 6 months of living expenses acrued and your car never ever breaks down, your A/C never ever stops working, you never ever have to go to the Doctor unexpected. Yeah, basically not so great.

For a huge chunk of average women and families, having no paid leave means no leave at all, since many can't afford to simply not generate a paycheck for 4 or 6 or 8 weeks - however long each individual woman deems necessary for her proper recovery AND bonding time with her new baby.

Of all the things we need to rectify about our great US of A, paid leave for new moms AND new dads needs to change, drastically. And NOW. This is unacceptable.

As my FB friend commented: "Pakistan? Really? Come on guys!!!" Yeah.

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