Private and public-sector workers in New Jersey are entitled to six weeks of paid family leave, which can be used by either parent or by a domestic partner. New Jersey is one of only two states with a payroll-funded family-leave program, which offers partial wage replacement to new parents and those caring for seriously ill family members. Enacted in 2008, New Jersey’s program offers two-thirds of a recipient’s income for six weeks.
The program also essentially functions as disability leave for women recovering from childbirth. TDI and paid family leave have to be taken sequentially, not at the same time. Workers are eligible for 26 weeks of TDI leave.
New Jersey law also provides 12 weeks of job-protected family leave, to care for a child or family member, within one year. However, the job protection under New Jersey’s FMLA does not apply to an employee’s own medical leave, so a new mother has no official job protection. Family leave benefits are available to civil union partners as well as those who are legally wed.
The Garden State, though, is one of the few states on this list that doesn’t have workplace nursing rights for either state or private employees.
