,,iii #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #aci ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,may #ac1 #bjac ,mr4 ,harkin 7for himself1 ,ms4 ,mikulski1 ,mrs4 ,murray1 ,mr4 ,sanders1 ,mr4 ,casey1 ,mr4 ,franken1 ,mr4 ,whitehouse1 ,mr4 ,murphy1 ,ms4 ,warren1 ,mr4 ,baucus1 ,mr4 ,levin1 ,mrs4 ,boxer1 ,mr4 ,durbin1 ,mr4 ,reed1 ,mr4 ,schumer1 ,mr4 ,lautenberg1 ,mr4 ,menendez1 ,mr4 ,cardin1 ,mr4 ,brown1 ,mr4 ,tester1 ,mrs4 ,shaheen1 ,mrs4 ,gillibrand1 ,mr4 ,coons1 ,mr4 ,blumenthal1 and ,ms4 ,heitkamp7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,,resolution ,celebrating the #bjth anniversary of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act of #aiic4 ,whereas ,february #e1 #bjac1 marks the #bjth anniversary of the enactment of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act of #aiic 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #bfaa et seq471 which was signed by ,president ,bill ,clinton2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act is a landmark law1 and the first significant law to address the need of families to balance work with family and health responsibilities2 ,whereas prior to the passage of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act1 employees often did not have access to leave from work1 or feared losing their jobs if they took leave1 when the employee or an immediate family member faced a serious health condition1 or when recovering from giving birth or bonding with a new child2 ,whereas prior to the passage of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act1 women often faced employment discrimination based on caregiving responsibilities and men often faced discrimination in accessing family leave2 ,whereas the responsibility to care for seriously ill family members and to bond with a newborn or newly adopted child is recognized1 respected1 and expected throughout the ,united ,states2 ,whereas ,congress worked in a bipartisan manner to craft the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act was the culmination of years of hard work and is a lasting legacy for ,senators ,chris ,dodd and ,kit ,bond and ,representatives ,pat ,schroeder and ,marge ,roukema1 among many others2 ,whereas the purposes of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act are-- 7#a7 to balance the demands of the workplace with the needs of families2 7#b7 to promote the stability and economic security of families2 7#c7 to promote national interests in preserving family integrity2 7#d7 to entitle employees to take reasonable leave for medical reasons1 the birth or adoption of a child1 and the care of a child1 spouse1 or parent with a serious health condition2 7#e7 to accomplish the purposes described in paragraphs 7#a7 through 7#d7 in a manner that accommodates the legitimate interests of employers and minimizes the potential for employment discrimination on the basis of sex2 and 7#f7 to promote the goal of equal employment opportunity for women and men2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act allows an employee to take up to #ab weeks of unpaid leave to bond with a newborn or newly adopted child1 to care for a child1 spouse1 or parent with a serious health condition1 and to tend to a serious health condition of the employee2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act benefits newborn or newly adopted children by creating strong family bonds1 allowing families time to make arrangements for future caregiving1 and promoting the establishment of healthy practices such as breastfeeding2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act provides job security and peace of mind for individuals and families struggling with a difficult diagnosis or other serious health condition2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act allows individuals to provide care for family members directly1 strengthening families and benefitting society by reducing costs to taxpayer-funded programs2 ,whereas ,congress recognized the unique family needs of military families and acted with bipartisan support in enacting the ,national ,defense ,authorization ,act for ,fiscal ,year #bjjh 7,public ,law #aaj-aha2 #abb ,stat4 #c7 and the ,national ,defense ,authorization ,act for ,fiscal ,year #bjaj 7,public ,law #aaa-hd2 #abc ,stat4 #baij7 to expand the protections of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act to meet the needs of military families2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act allows leave to deal with qualifying exigencies arising from the deployment of a family member to covered active duty in the ,united ,states ,armed ,forces2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act provides up to #bf weeks of leave to care for a member of the ,armed ,forces or recent veteran who was seriously injured or became seriously ill because of active duty in the ,united ,states ,armed ,forces2 ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act helps the ,united ,states to fulfill the responsibility to support military families and care for wounded warriors2 and ,whereas the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act has been invoked more than #ajj1jjj1jjj times1 allowing millions of families to attend to both work and family responsibilities3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,senate-- 7#a7 recognizes and honors the #bjth anniversary of the enactment of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act of #aiic 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #bfaa et seq472 7#b7 salutes all of the individuals who contributed to the enactment of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act2 7#c7 encourages all individuals in the ,united ,states to celebrate the advance of workplace protections and opportunities made possible by the enactment of the ,family and ,medical ,leave ,act2 and 7#d7 pledges to continue to work on a bipartisan basis to ensure that all individuals in the ,united ,states are able to balance work and family responsibilities4