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By NOAH WORTHAM | Managing Editor

MONTGOMERY – The Alabama Public Employee Paid Parental Leave Act successfully passed the House—paving the way for teachers in Shelby County to soon have the option of paid parental leave.

On Thursday, March 20, the Alabama Public Employee Paid Parental Leave Act, sponsored by Sen. Vivian Figure, D-Mobile, and Rep. Ginny Shaver, R-Leesburg, passed through the House on a vote of 94 yeas, two nays and two abstentions. The bill will now go to Gov. Kay Ivey for a signature.

“Alabama teachers and state workers will be able to have paid parental leave beginning July 1,” said Ivey in an official Facebook post. “Thank you to Rep. Ginny Shaver and Sen. Vivian Figures for carrying this important legislation. I look forward to receiving the bill and getting my signature on it.”

Previously, the state did not provide paid parental leave for state employees or employees of local education agencies.

The act, filed as SB199, provides up to up to eight weeks of paid parental leave to full time female state employees and educators for the birth, stillbirth and miscarriage of a child. Full time male state employees and educators will receive two weeks of paid parental leave for the birth, stillbirth and miscarriage of a child. Eligible employees are also entitled to eight weeks and two weeks for the adoption of a child three years or younger.

“This significant piece of legislation is an example of how we value children and families in our state,” said Shaver, a sponsor of the bill. “The Parental Leave Act will provide state and education employees with the opportunity to properly bond with their children without the added stress of worrying about their jobs. It is a valuable recruitment and retention tool to attract and keep quality employees and help us remain competitive with peer states who have already enacted these important pro-family policies.”

Ivey previously endorsed the bill during her state of the state address in which she expressed her desire to support Alabama families and to recruit and retain state employees and public school teachers.

“First, if a teacher wants to start a family, she should have the proper maternity leave,” Ivey said during her address. “That is why I am proud to have Sen. Vivian Figures and Rep. Ginny Shaver joining forces this year to pass a good, responsible parental leave bill to support both our state workers and teachers. In Alabama, we are committed to strengthening families and ensuring our hardworking state employees—including our teachers—have the support they need during life’s most important moments.”

The bill includes a return-to-work provision requiring employees to agree in writing with their employer to not separate from employment for a period of at least eight weeks following the conclusion of any leave taken in connection with a birth, stillbirth or miscarriage of a child. An exception is given for the event an employee faces a circumstance in which they are unable to return due to their own serious health condition or that of an immediate family member.