I’d also love to know

You have to look at your pay stubs to see if you get PFML taken out of your paycheck. If so, then you are entitled to 12 weeks of bonding leave with some pay from the state.

The birth of the baby gives you 6-8 weeks of medical leave. You are then entitled to 12 weeks of baby bonding time through PFML.

This is the official website and also where you apply.

https://www.mass.gov/info-details/paid-family-and-medical-leave-pfml-overview-and-benefits

If you have an HR department they need to be your first stop, they should help you with the paperwork, there will probably be both corporate paperwork and state paperwork.

That said, most people can take up to 12 weeks paid. It has to be used within 12 months of the triggering event (birth, adoption) but can be taken in several chunks.

The way it works is you submit the paperwork and then the state sends you checks for a percentage of your salary. Your employer doesn't pay you and in fact you may need to pay them to cover your insurance premiums. You also are protected from losing your job, similar to federal family medical leave.

You can only take medical leave for your own condition, so unless you're the one pregnant it doesn't apply to parental leave, only the 12 weeks family leave.

I'm curious about the "I may need to pay my employer" part. Could you elaborate on that?

For me, I wrote HR a check to cover the healthcare premiums that would have been deducted from my paycheck. It's the same thing that happens during unpaid leave. The way PFML is structured, from your employers perspective, it is unpaid leave, you just get payroll replacement checks from the state.

12 weeks at any time during the first year. Adoption and foster care count too.

Note too that there are exceptions for certain public workers. For example, teachers, police, fire, and other municipal workers don’t get it. So if you work for an exempt employer you won’t have had the money taken out of your paychecks, but you won’t be eligible for the paid leave. You can still take unpaid leave though.

Ooo, question then: If I don't receive my health insurance through my employer (I'm on my wife's plan), do I not have to pay anything?

If you're married, spouse's major medical qualifies you for relative's major medical. But it would take you beyond the 12 weeks that FMLA protects your job.

I’m curious which pages you are finding with conflicting info. Mind sharing the links you looked at?

You wouldn't need to pay health insurance premiums, correct.

You are “entitled” to 12 weeks.

However, I think MA is still an “at will” employment state…and I personally know a lot of new dads who got laid off shortly after they came back from leave.

“Oh but that’s illegal! Employers can’t do that!”

Except they do.

They will offer a severance package that comes with a non-disparagement/confidentially/waiver clause….and so these dads are forced to choose between 3-6 months pay and keeping their resume intact, or trying to sue a huge employer, spending tens of thousands on a lawsuit that has low odds of success because the employer will smear the hell out of them with “he was a poor performer” claims. Then - win or lose - the dad gets to enjoy having a “litigious reputation” follow him around when he looks for new jobs. (Similar to being a whistleblower. Prepare for career suicide).

TLDR: check the pulse of your employer before taking 12-weeks of leave. Some are very accommodating. Some less so. It sucks that all employers aren’t required to truly respect family leave.

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I gave my guy 2 weeks, he was back in one though.

Incorrect. I am currently on week 9 of my paternity leave. I was not the one who gave birth.

Edit: looks like I’m wrong. PFML & Medical leave are different apparently

That is Family Medical Leave, not Medical Leave. Precise language is important here.

I stand corrected

Take these stories to the press. Employers who do this deserve to be outed.

Just want to confirm - if you are the birthing parent you could end up with 18-20 weeks of time off if you choose to, right? I am just hearing this now and realizing I did not receive accurate info. I just returned to work and my employer told me I get 12 weeks max and that's including my recovery from a c-section. I pay into FMLA.

Yes, that's correct under PFML, not FMLA