WV bill would include maternity leave in public school leave banks

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Lawmakers are considering a bill aimed at one of the most crucial realities facing working parents in West Virginia: how to take time off when a baby arrives. HB 4485 focuses on county leave banks, a system used by many public employees.

At the beginning of the year, workers can voluntarily donate personal or sick days to a shared pool. Employees who later run out of their own leave can then apply to use time from that bank, but those donated days often can’t be used for maternity leave.

Earlier this month, lawmakers in a public education subcommittee discussed two separate bills to fix that problem. One would have allowed pregnant employees and new mothers who are public school employees to use days from a county leave bank for maternity leave. The other—HB 4485–would have ensured that employees from West Virginia’s public school and higher education systems are allowed to donate days specifically for maternity-related needs.

An amendment to HB 4485 essentially combined the two bills, and HB 4485 was discussed by the House Education Committee yesterday.

Del. Elliott Pritt, R-Fayette, said during last week’s subcommittee meeting that addressing this issue is “a small thing we can do for moms,” but acknowledged that small things matter when you’re out of sick days, out of personal days and staring down unpaid leave.

Lawmakers in that meeting also noted that the need for leave often doesn’t end with childbirth. Babies born prematurely or placed in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) can require weeks of hospital care. Toddlers can also develop serious illnesses that require a parent to be at their bedside.

Several lawmakers pointed out that while employees’ jobs are generally protected if they take extended leave, the days beyond their available balance are unpaid. For families already stretched thin, that can be devastating. Donated days would go into a bank rather than being transferred directly from one worker to another, maintaining the existing structure while expanding who can use it.

West Virginia doesn’t require any parental leave for private companies. Certain state and public employees qualify for up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave after the birth of a child. That lack of leave disproportionately impacts Black West Virginians.

68 percent of Black mothers are the family’s breadwinner, compared to 40 percent of white mothers, according to the Center for American Progress. Black mothers are more likely to experience severe complications during pregnancy that require complex recovery, according to an analysis shared in a National Library of Medicine database. And their babies are also more likely to be born premature or have low birthweights, all of which make a stay in the NICU more likely.

Although difficult pregnancies may require more complex leave needs, lawmakers also expressed a desire that the bills help all birthing mothers.

The lead sponsor of HB 4485, Del. Bill Bell, R-Wetzel, shared that he was made aware of a county outside his district that explicitly prohibits the use of sick bank days for a “normal” pregnancy — language that drew concern from the committee.

“The county only allows bank sick days to be used unless it is an abnormal pregnancy,” Bell said. ”Specifically, if the mother’s life were in danger and/or the baby’s life is in danger.”

HB 4485 has been discussed by the larger House Education Committee, but it hasn’t been voted on yet. If it passes the committee, it will head to the House Floor.

Lawmaker discussions have highlighted whether West Virginia’s parents should have to choose between caring for their children and keeping their paychecks whole. For now, lawmakers seem to agree that if coworkers are willing to help each other, the law shouldn’t stand in the way.