PITTSBURGH —
The Allegheny County Health Committee voted 5-1 on Thursday to advance a paid parental leave proposal to the full county council, moving the proposal closer to becoming law.
“It’s good for public health. It’s good for families. It brings growth to our county,” said Aden Halpern, of Pittsburgh United.
“This is something that we’ve been working on for quite some time. There have been any number of opportunities for members of the public to come to council, come to the Gold Room and be heard,” said Allegheny County Council member Paul Klein, chair of the Health and Human Services Committee.
The policy would require businesses with 15 or more eligible employees to provide at least 12 weeks of paid leave to both parents. Full- or part-time employees would need to work for at least six months or 625 hours to qualify.
The Board of Health made edits to the proposal after reviewing 1,500 public comments, which included concerns about its impact on small businesses.
“Big companies provide these kind of benefits right now, but smaller businesses are more challenged on that front,” Klein said. “I think the administration should provide resources so that small business owners, nonprofits, small human services organizations understand more clearly what the guidelines are.”
Council member Suzanne Filiaggi cast the lone “no” vote, explaining that while she did not dispute the science behind the policy, she was concerned about the details of its rollout.
The Allegheny Conference on Community Development and other local business organizations continue to oppose the proposal. Following the vote, they issued a statement: “Allegheny County competes for investment, talent, and job creation within a highly regional and national marketplace. Policies like the one before Council materially increase employer cost structures and can have negative consequences for our ability to both attract businesses as well as persuade companies to stay and expand.”
Klein acknowledged these concerns and expressed hope that they could be addressed as the policy moves forward.
The full County Council is set to vote on the proposal at its Oct. 20 meeting. If approved, the policy will head to the county executive’s desk for final approval.