Quoted Text

Changes to unpaid
leave act proposed
    WASHINGTON — The Bush administration is proposing the fi rst changes in more than a decade to regulations that give workers unpaid leave to deal with family or medical emergencies, a move that concerns some of the law’s supporters who want to see it expanded.
    The Labor Department announced Thursday it had sent the first proposed changes to regulations governing the Family and Medical Leave Act to the White House’s Office of Management and Budget for approval.
    While refusing to outline the changes, Assistant Labor Secretary Victoria A. Lipnic said the proposed regulations will not reduce the number of people today who can take advantage of FMLA leaves.
    “People who are currently eligible under this law do not lose their eligibility,” she said.
    But Debra Ness, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families, suggested that offi - cials should be trying to expand the law, not change regulations.
    The 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act grants eligible workers up to a total of 12 weeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period for such things as caring for a newborn or a sick family member, or because the employee has a serious health condition. It generally covers employers with 50 or more employees.
    Seven million people took FMLA leave in 2005, the latest year for which data is available.