My family depends on me to help provide financial support, and I don’t get any paid family leave at all.
My younger brother (26 year old) has had two heart attacks in the last year. My mother's health is declining as well. We cannot afford the help we need much less to miss a minute of work. I need to be there for my family.
The hardest thing was having to make the decision to keep working and neglect my family needs, or leave and take the risk of being homeless again due to lack of income.
My employer was understanding of my choice to leave work but did nothing otherwise. They allowed me to leave work without risk of losing my job, but weren't even able to provide additional hours to make it up.
We need paid family leave because I need to be able to leave without fear. When times are already tough, an employer shouldn't make it harder. Especially to dedicated, hard working employees.
