The United States Chamber of Commerce this week gave its approval to HR. 4219, The Work Flex in the 21st Century Act, filed by California republican Congresswoman Mimi Walters. The bill does not create nor mandate a paid leave policy, but rather offers private businesses flexibility in tailoring paid leave programs for its employees. Further, the measure would exempt private businesses from local and state paid leave mandates so long as they met certain minimum standards for employee workplace flexibility. For example, according to the bill as drafted, a flexible workplace arrangement plan must provide a minimum amount of paid leave per year (between 12 & 20 days), as well as another benefit such as predictive scheduling, a compressed work schedule, flexible scheduling and the like. The bill however, is not seen as competing with legislation allowing for employees to ‘borrow’ from their social security benefits that is expected to be filed soon by Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL).
