A bill that gives some workers unpaid time off to attend their child’s parent-teacher conferences got a passing grade in the Senate on Monday, despite protests from Republican lawmakers.
Sen. Bob Bacon, D-Fort Collins, urged support of House Bill 1057, saying students perform better when their parents are involved.
Republicans agreed but said the bill isn’t the answer and sends the wrong message to businesses.
“You can’t legislate parental involvement anymore than you can legislate parental love or anything else,” said Sen. Nancy Spence, R-Centennial.
Sen. Mark Scheffel, a Parker Republican, said he was concerned because there was little testimony in the Senate Education Committee about businesses refusing to allow their employees to attend conferences or special meetings.
“We know that parental involvement is critical, but are we laying this problem squarely at the feet of business?” he asked.
This is the third time Democrats have introduced a parental-leave bill since taking control of the legislature in 2005. The other bills passed the Senate but were so watered down in the House to appease business interests that Sen. Peter Groff, D-Denver, killed his own bills when they returned to the Senate.
Bacon said the concerns of business owners have been addressed in the measure. The bill as it was introduced this year exempted employers with fewer than 10 workers, but after being amended, it now impacts only those with 50 or more employees.
In addition, the bill was changed at Sen. Rollie Heath’s request to allow an employer to deny leave at the last minute based on what is happening on the job.
Heath, a Boulder Democrat and a businessman most of his life, said he couldn’t have supported the bill without that provision.
Majority Leader Brandon Shaffer, D-Longmont, congratulated Bacon for his efforts to come to the “appropriate balance.”
“The fact that (the Colorado Association of Commerce & Industry) is now neutral speaks volumes that the business community looks at this and says, ‘This isn’t so bad.’ ”
Spence disagreed.
“Just because CACI’s neutral, that doesn’t hold any water with me,” she said of the influential business group. “When CACI comes out and says, ‘Yes, this is a great bill,’ I’ll vote for it.”
At least 12 other states and the District of Columbia have state parental-involvement laws, according to the bill’s House sponsor, Rep. Andy Kerr, D-Lakewood.
The bill, which has passed the House, needs just a still-unscheduled final vote in the Senate.
Parental Leave Act
The Senate on Monday gave initial approval to House Bill 1057, which :
Allows workers to take up to 18 hours annually in unpaid leave to attend their child’s parent-teacher conferences or special meetings.
• Applies to businesses with 50 or more employees.
• Limits the leave to six hours a month, in increments of three hours or less.
• Requires employees to give one week’s notice, except in emergencies.
(Businesses with a comparable leave policy are not required to offer additional leave.)
Fans say
Students with parents who are involved in their school tend to have fewer behavioral problems and better academic performance and are more likely to complete secondary school.
• More than one in three workers with children who scored in the bottom in math and reading held jobs in which they lacked paid sick or vacation leave.
Foes say
It creates a disincentive for employers to hire someone with school-age children.
• It penalizes employees who do not have school-age children by allowing fellow workers up to 18 hours a year in additional time off.
Sources: Various studies, including the National Committee for Citizens in Education; Republican Business Coalition
