Democrats in Allegheny County Pass Historic Paid Family Leave Legislation

Democratic Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato is expected to sign an historic paid family leave bill on Thursday, as she prepares to give birth to her first child next month. The legislation will make Allegheny County, where Pittsburgh is located, the first county to have such a policy in a state without its own statewide law. 

“I want to thank County Council for taking a bold step tonight and putting the health of Allegheny County's families first,” Innamorato said in a statement. “By passing the first county-level paid parental leave policy in the country, we're showing that we're serious about protecting workers and their families at one of the most economically and medically vulnerable times in their lives.”

Allegheny County Council passed the legislation on Tuesday by a vote of 11 to 4, after a two-hour public comment session and months of debate over how the policy would be implemented. Business groups had objected to the bill, saying the costs of the policy would be too burdensome.

The bill requires companies with 15 or more employees within the county to provide 12 weeks of paid parental leave. Employees must work six months and 625 hours to be eligible, and there will be a 12-month grace period for included companies to comply.

“We’ve waited decades for Washington and Harrisburg to act. Tonight, Allegheny County can be the first county in the nation to stop waiting,” said Councilman Dan Grzybek, who voted in favor of the legislation.

Fourteen states and Washington, D.C. have passed paid family leave laws, but attempts to pass statewide legislation in Pennsylvania have failed to advance. A bill that passed in the Democratic-controlled state House earlier this year stalled in the Republican-controlled Senate.