Black Voices: Money and Employment News from Across the Nation
- Under FMLA, a spouse can take leave to attend routine prenatal care; PWFA applies only to the birthing parent.
- Juneteenth originated in Texas on June 19, 1866 and became a federal holiday signed by President Biden in 2021.
- Unmarried fathers are not entitled to FMLA for a partner's prenatal care but are eligible for FMLA to care for their child's serious health condition.
- Birth mothers may get paid short term disability for childbirth recovery while fathers typically receive unpaid FMLA bonding leave; they are not similarly situated.
NOTE FROM ROBIN: Because of the Juneteenth holiday tomorrow, this will be my “Friday” post.
Happy Juneteenth!
And a very happy Father’s Day to all dads, all those who have a dad, and all those who know and love a dad.
How much do you know about dads in the workplace in 2026 – and Juneteenth? Take our combo quiz and find out! The answers appear at the end of each question, so you can cheat all you want, and we’ll never know. If you make it all the way to the end, there will be a special gift selected especially for you.
On the “dad” questions, please assume that only federal law applies.
Ready? Here we go!
No. 1: Joe and his wife, Mary, work for different employers and have each been employed full-time for more than 12 months.
Mary is pregnant with their first child, and has some routine prenatal visits coming up. Joe asks his employer to give him time off so that he can go with Mary to her visits. Assuming Joe has not taken any medical or parental leave until now, what (if anything) is he entitled to?
A. No leave whatsoever. Routine prenatal care is a big nothing. All they do is weigh you, take your blood pressure, and measure your belly. No need to have your spouse along for that.
B. Joe should be able to take time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act. Even routine prenatal care is a “serious health condition” under the FMLA, and Joe is Mary’s spouse.
C. Joe should be able to take FMLA leave for the reasons stated in Answer B, but in addition, since his time off is pregnancy-related, he may be entitled to time off as a reasonable accommodation under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act.
D. All of the above.
ANSWER: B. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act does not apply to anyone except the “birthing parent,” so Joe has no accommodation rights under the PWFA. But because Mary’s prenatal care is a “serious health condition” under the FMLA and Joe is her spouse, Joe qualifies for FMLA leave.
No. 2: Juneteenth celebrates the day that the end of slavery was officially announced in which state?
A. Minnesota
B. California
C. Vermont
D. Texas
ANSWER: D. The holiday was initially celebrated in Texas on June 19, 1866, commemorating the one-year anniversary of the date when official news of the Emancipation Proclamation (signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863) finally reached Texas.
No. 3: Hiram and Miriam are co-workers. After the office holiday party in 2024, they had too much to drink and went off to a motel together for a one-night stand. The next morning, they were both embarrassed and decided to forget that it ever happened, but Miriam became pregnant with little Chloe. A few months later, Miriam’s ankles started swelling and became very uncomfortable. Hiram asked for FMLA leave to go with Miriam to her OB/GYN, but the employer denied his request even after he provided proof that he was Chloe’s father.
After Chloe was born, she developed bronchitis and had to be hospitalized for a few days. Hiram again asked for FMLA leave to be with Chloe. This time, the employer granted his request.
Did the employer do anything right here?
A. Yes. The employer did everything right. Hiram is not entitled to FMLA leave for Miriam’s prenatal care, even though it is a “serious health condition,” because he is not Miriam’s spouse. But he is entitled to FMLA leave for Chloe’s serious health condition because he is Chloe’s parent – whether he is married to her mother or not.
B. No. The employer should have granted FMLA leave to Hiram for both events because he is Chloe’s father.
C. No. The employer should have denied both of Hiram’s FMLA leave requests because Hiram is not Miriam’s spouse.
ANSWER: A. For the reasons stated in A.
And I am delighted to announce that Chloe is fully recovered now.
No. 4: Which U.S. President made Juneteenth a federal holiday?
A. Abraham Lincoln
B. Donald Trump
C. Warren G. Harding
D. Joe Biden
E. Lyndon Johnson
ANSWER: D. President Biden signed the federal holiday into law in 2021 after Congress voted to create it.
No. 5: John and Genevieve are co-workers and were hired on the same day in 2023. John and his wife, Susan, are expecting a baby in November. Genevieve and her husband, Charles, are expecting a baby in October. Both pregnancies have been uneventful.
John and Genevieve separately go to Human Resources and ask for time off during the anticipated period when their babies will be born. HR allows Genevieve to have up to 12 weeks of FMLA leave, six of which will be covered by short-term disability benefits running concurrently with the FMLA leave. HR allows John to take up to 12 weeks of FMLA leave, all unpaid.
John hears about what Genevieve got, and he claims that he is being discriminated against for being a male because his leave is all unpaid while Genevieve gets paid for six of her 12 weeks.
Is John right?
A. Yes. Both John and Genevieve are expectant parents, and they should be treated exactly the same, regardless of their gender.
B. No. It is fine for employers to treat fathers less favorably than mothers. Dads are important, but motherhood is sacred.
C. No. The company did treat John and Genevieve equally and legally, considering the circumstances. As a birth mother, Genevieve will have a period of medical disability resulting from the birth of her baby. That’s why she qualifies for six weeks of STD for the period of her medical recovery from childbirth, in addition to six additional weeks of “bonding” leave. John is entitled to FMLA leave, but because he will not have a medical disability, he won’t be entitled to STD benefits. Because Genevieve is the birthing parent and John is not, they are not “similarly situated.”
ANSWER: C. By the way, if Genevieve develops complications at some point during pregnancy or childbirth, she may be entitled to more than six weeks of STD.
No. 6: What kind of soda pop is traditionally associated with Juneteenth celebrations?
A. Coke Zero
B. Pepsi
C. Dr. Pepper
D. Strawberry pop
E. 7-Up
ANSWER: D. When Juneteenth was celebrated in the early days, it was traditional to serve food that was red because the red symbolized the struggle for freedom.
HOW’DJA DO?
5-6 Correct: You are Frederick Douglass, civil rights icon and father of seven!
3-4 Correct: You are the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., civil rights icon and father of four!
1-2 Correct: You are President Abraham Lincoln, father of the Emancipation Proclamation and four children!
0 Correct: Sorry. You are James K. Polk, who wasn’t involved in civil rights (as far as I know) and didn’t have any children. On a more positive note, he is a UNC alum. Class of 1818. (I graduated from there a few years later. Go Heels!)
Just kidding! You all did great. And here is that special gift I promised you:
Your very own bottle of strawberry pop!
Have a great weekend, everybody. Happy Father’s Day, and CELEBRATE FREEDOM!!!
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