BP LEE UNVEILS NEW PAID PARENTAL LEAVE POLICY FOR QUEENS BOROUGH PRESIDENT’S OFFICE

QBPO Parents Now Eligible For Up to 24 Weeks of Paid Parental Leave

(Feb. 4, 2020 at 12pm)

QUEENS, NY – Acting Queens Borough President Sharon Lee today announced a new policy for all employees of the Queens Borough President’s Office (QBPO): 12 weeks of fully-paid parental leave, effective immediately. This new agency-specific paid parental leave benefit is separate from and supplements other city, state and federal family/parental leave policies.

Combining both the new QBPO-specific 12-week policy and already existing plans, all QBPO employees – both managerial and non-managerial – will be eligible for up to 24 weeks of paid parental leave for the birth, formal adoption and/or foster care of a child or children.

“Our nation lags severely behind other industrialized nations when it comes to paid parental leave,” said Borough President LEE. “Queens, however, is the Borough of Families, of all shapes, sizes and forms. We recognize that building a family is a precious and significant life event for everyone involved. We also recognize that a baby or child of a non-managerial employee deserves no less bonding time than one of a managerial employee. This new, family-focused paid parental leave policy is designed to move our agency of municipal workers closer to fairness, equity and the values we all share and hold dear. If it’s good for families, it’s good for Queens.”

“As the largest union of 150,000 active municipal workers and 60,000 retirees, we are thrilled the Queens Borough President’s Office is embodying the borough’s value of family,” said AFSCME District Council 37 Executive Director HENRY GARRIDO. “This agency-specific policy more fairly supports our members and their families as they serve one of their most consequential purposes — caring for their children. Queens is setting an example for the rest of the nation by demonstrating that when you value something, it can be done by offering equity between all employees.”

The new policy is supplemental to other city, state and federal family/parental leave policies, and does not disrupt collectively-bargained agreements between labor unions and the City of New York. Leave under the new QBPO policy must be used within one year of the birth, adoption or fostering of a child, but may be taken at one time or intermittently.

Follow the Office of the Queens Borough President via @QueensBP2020 on Twitter and Facebook