Paul Ryan, who was named Speaker of the House last week, is not a fan of paid maternity leave. If the name rings a bell it’s because Ryan, a Republican from Wisconsin, served as Mitt Romney’s running mate way back in the 2012 presidential election. Before Ryan was appointed as speaker he made clear that he wouldn’t give up “family time” for the new position, causing many to question his stance on paid family leave.
Some find his stance a bit hypocritical considering he wants his own family time but isn’t willing to support a policy that would allow others to have the same opportunity. Ryan fired back on CNN’s State of the Union saying, “I don’t think that sticking up for being a person with balance in your life, for wanting to spend you weekends in your home with your family… I don’t think that means signing up for some new unfunded mandate.”
The fact is that the U.S. is the only industrialized country that doesn’t have mandated maternity or paternity leave. According to U.S. census data, a quarter of first time mothers quit their jobs or are fired after having their babies. The sad truth is that without paid leave, many women struggle with their careers after having children.
Ryan instead sponsors a bill called the “Working Family Flexibility Act”, which would allow private-sector workers to forgo overtime hours for paid time off. Â
“I think we’ve has some pretty good legislation on flex time,” he told CNN. Still, many are calling his policies hypocritical. What are your thoughts, collegiettes?