There is no federal maternity leave law that guarantees paid time off after the birth of a child in the United States. The closest thing is the Family and Medical Leave Act, which entitles eligible employees to up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave. A separate 2019 statute gives federal government employees 12 weeks of paid parental leave, but that benefit does not extend to the private sector. Other federal laws protect pregnant and nursing workers from discrimination and require reasonable accommodations, though none of them come with a paycheck.
What the FMLA Actually Guarantees
The FMLA provides up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for the birth and care of a newborn, or for a child placed through adoption or foster care.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC Chapter 28 – Family and Medical Leave Any time off you take for pregnancy complications before delivery counts against that same 12-week allotment.2U.S. Department of Labor. Family and Medical Leave (FMLA)
While you are out, your employer must keep your group health insurance active on the same terms as if you were still working. You keep paying your share of the premium, but coverage cannot be dropped or downgraded.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC Chapter 28 – Family and Medical Leave – Section 2614
When your leave ends, the employer must return you to your original job or an equivalent one with the same pay, benefits, and working conditions.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC Chapter 28 – Family and Medical Leave – Section 2614 There is a narrow exception for “key employees,” meaning salaried workers in the top 10 percent of pay within 75 miles of the worksite. Even then, the employer can only refuse reinstatement if bringing you back would cause substantial and grievous economic injury to the business, and it must tell you so while you are still on leave.4U.S. Department of Labor. Key Employees – Family and Medical Leave Act Advisor
Bonding leave for a new child must generally be taken as one continuous block unless the employer agrees to let you split it up. It also has to conclude within 12 months after the birth or placement.5U.S. Department of Labor. FMLA Frequently Asked Questions
Who Qualifies for FMLA Leave
Not every worker is covered. You must meet all three of these requirements:
- You have worked for the employer for at least 12 months. The months do not need to be consecutive, though gaps longer than seven years generally do not count.
- You have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months immediately before your leave begins. Paid time off, holidays, and other non-work hours do not count.
- Your employer has at least 50 employees working within 75 miles of your worksite.
Missing any one of these disqualifies you from federal protection.6eCFR. 29 CFR Part 825 – The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 – Section 825.110 The 50-employee rule is where most people fall out. Workers at smaller companies get nothing under the FMLA.
Remote Workers
If you work from home, your residence is not your “worksite” for FMLA purposes. The Department of Labor treats the office you report to, or the office your assignments come from, as your worksite, and the 75-mile radius is measured from there. A remote employee whose reporting office has 50 or more workers within 75 miles meets the requirement even if home is across the country.7U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2023-1 – Telework Under the FLSA and FMLA
When Both Parents Work for the Same Employer
A rule that catches couples off guard: if both spouses work for the same employer, their combined FMLA leave for the birth or placement of a child is limited to 12 workweeks total between them, not 12 weeks each. Each parent still has separate FMLA rights for other qualifying reasons, such as a personal serious health condition, but bonding leave with a new child is shared.8U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. Fact Sheet #28L – Leave Under the FMLA for Spouses Who Work for the Same Employer
Giving Notice
For a foreseeable leave like an expected due date, you owe your employer at least 30 days of advance notice. If the birth comes early or complications arise, notice is due as soon as reasonably possible.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 2612 – Leave Requirement Your employer can also request medical certification supporting the leave.
How to Get Paid During Unpaid Leave
FMLA leave is unpaid on its face, but that rarely means 12 weeks with no income. Your employer can require you to use accrued vacation, sick days, or personal leave at the same time as FMLA leave, and you can elect to do this on your own. Either way, the paid time runs concurrently with FMLA leave and counts against your 12-week entitlement rather than adding to it.10eCFR. 29 CFR 825.207 – Substitution of Paid Leave
Short-term disability insurance, whether through your employer or a private policy, often covers a portion of your salary during the weeks you are medically unable to work after delivery. These benefits typically replace 50 to 70 percent of weekly earnings and can run alongside FMLA leave.
More than a dozen states and the District of Columbia have enacted their own paid family leave programs funded through payroll contributions. These provide partial wage replacement during parental leave, with maximum weekly benefits and duration varying by state. If you live in one of these states, those benefits can supplement FMLA job protection.
Pregnancy and Nursing Protections Beyond the FMLA
Several federal laws protect pregnant and nursing workers even when FMLA leave itself is not in play.
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act, an amendment to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, applies to employers with 15 or more employees. It requires them to treat pregnancy the same as any other temporary condition affecting a worker’s ability to do the job. If your employer would give light duty to someone recovering from surgery, it has to offer the same to a pregnant employee with similar limitations.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 2000e – Definitions
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which took effect in 2023, goes further. It also applies to employers with 15 or more employees and requires reasonable accommodations for known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or recovery.12Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 USC 2000gg-1 – Nondiscrimination With Regard to Reasonable Accommodations Related to Pregnancy13Federal Register. Implementation of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act That might mean a modified schedule, permission to sit during a shift, more frequent bathroom breaks, or temporary reassignment away from heavy lifting. The employer must work with you on a solution unless it can show undue hardship. EEOC rules also bar employers from forcing an accommodation you did not ask for, disclosing your confidential medical information, or retaliating against you for asserting your rights.14U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Summary of Key Provisions of EEOCs Final Rule to Implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act requires employers to provide reasonable break time to express breast milk for up to one year after a child’s birth, plus a private space that is shielded from view and free from intrusion. A bathroom does not qualify.15Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 218d – Breastfeeding Accommodations in the Workplace The PUMP Act reaches most workers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act, a much broader group than the FMLA’s 50-employee threshold, though employers with fewer than 50 employees can seek an undue hardship exemption.16U.S. Department of Labor. Frequently Asked Questions – Pumping Breast Milk at Work
Paid Parental Leave for Federal Employees
The one group with a federal right to paid parental leave is federal civilian employees covered under Title 5. The Federal Employee Paid Leave Act, enacted in 2019, provides up to 12 administrative workweeks of paid leave for the birth of a child or the placement of a child for adoption or foster care. That paid leave substitutes for what would otherwise be unpaid FMLA leave, and it must be used within 12 months of the birth or placement.17U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Paid Parental Leave
Before taking any of it, the employee has to sign a written agreement to return to work for at least 12 weeks after leave ends. That obligation applies no matter how much paid leave is actually used; three weeks off still triggers the full 12-week commitment.17U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Paid Parental Leave The benefit does not extend to private-sector employees, state government workers, or contractors. It covers most federal executive branch employees who meet standard FMLA eligibility rules.18U.S. Department of Labor. Paid Parental Leave
If Your Employer Violates These Rights
If your employer fires you for taking FMLA leave, denies leave you are entitled to, or retaliates for a request, you have two options. You can file a complaint with the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, either online or by calling 1-866-487-9243. The complaint is routed to the nearest field office, and investigators typically make contact within two business days.19Worker.gov. Filing a Complaint With the Wage and Hour Division
You can also bring a private civil action against your employer. The deadline is two years from the last event that made up the violation, or three years if the violation was willful, meaning the employer knew it was breaking the law.20Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 2617 – Enforcement Remedies can include back pay, lost benefits, and other compensation. The Department of Labor may also bring its own enforcement action if it finds violations during an investigation.21U.S. Department of Labor. Fact Sheet #77B – Protection for Individuals Under the FMLA
Claims under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act or the Pregnancy Discrimination Act follow a different path. Those go to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which handles charges of pregnancy-related workplace discrimination.