In 1988, Tommy Thompson became one of the first governors in the country to sign a state Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) into law. Five years later, Congress passed a federal FMLA.

FMLA allows an employee who meets certain criteria to take unpaid time off if they become ill, have a child, or need to care for a sick loved one. Unfortunately, the federal FMLA just doesn’t live up to Wisconsin standards.

Wisconsin’s current Family Medical Leave Act is stronger than the federal law, but it still restricts half the workforce from accessing job-protected time off. And because it’s unpaid, many people are unable to take time off to care for a loved one or recover from illness.

Part of boosting the economy is protecting the jobs we do have. Nobody should lose their job because they have cancer or their parent has Alzheimer’s.

In addition to protecting the higher standards of care that we have valued for 25 years, Wisconsin should expand family leave (like other states have) into a Family Leave Insurance Program.

Click here to sign the petition and let legislators know that we want to see Wisconsin’s FMLA expanded, not cut!