Harkin, Miller back workers as Supreme Court hears argument in Family Medical Leave Act Case
WASHINGTON – As the U.S. Supreme Court hears oral arguments today in a case concerning whether state employees have the same rights as private sector workers to take unpaid leave to address a serious medical condition under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Representative George Miller (CA-7) issued the following statements supporting the rights of all workers to utilize their rights under FMLA.
“People facing serious health problems need to be able to take time off to recuperate without worrying about losing their jobs. We passed the Family and Medical Leave Act to ensure that no one would be forced to make impossible choices between their health and their family’s economic security.” said Harkin, who is the Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. “Unfortunately, the Supreme Court could undermine this important protection for millions of state workers. That is not what we intended in passing this landmark law. I am hopeful that the Court will acknowledge the true intentions of the law and affirm these vital protections for all hardworking Americans.”
“If denied the law’s protection, countless workers would be put in the impossible position of choosing between keeping their jobs or dealing with a serious health condition. Americans shouldn’t have to make that choice,” said Rep. George Miller, ranking member on the House Education and the Workforce Committee. “Congress passed the Family and Medical Leave Act after carefully considering decades of evidence of discrimination by both private and governmental employers against men and women with serious health conditions or with sick family members. The Court has already upheld Congress’ authority to provide protections for these workers and should do so again.”
Earlier this year, Senator Harkin and Congressman Miller, along with other current and former Senators and Representatives involved in the consideration and passage of the FMLA, filed an amicus brief in this important case, arguing that Congress intended the entire Act to apply to state employees, that passage of the provision was well within Congress’s power, and that it is critical that all workers have the ability to enforce their rights in court.
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