Report: R.I. ranks well for worker protections

RHODE ISLAND was the No. 4 in the country for worker protection laws in a report form the National Partnership for Women & Families. / COURTESY NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP FOR WOMEN & FAMILIES
RHODE ISLAND was the No. 4 in the country for worker protection laws in a report form the National Partnership for Women & Families. / COURTESY NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP FOR WOMEN & FAMILIES

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island received an A- grade for its workplace protections from the National Partnership for Women & Families, the nonprofit announced Monday in a report called “Raising Expectations.”

Rhode Island was one of six states that received an A- or an A in the report, ranking fourth in a ranking of states and the District of Colombia. No state received an A+ this year. States received credit for laws affecting private- and public-sector workers that provide access to workplace leave that goes beyond the baseline set by the Family and Medical Leave Act.

The Ocean State received points in the graded policy survey for its protection of both private-sector and public-sector workers.

Private sector:

  • Family leave policy in Rhode Island provides four weeks of family leave for those with a new child or to deal with a serious health condition of a family member, and 30 weeks to tend to a worker’s own disability. Rhode Island received a 20 out of 25 points for family leave, losing 5 points for not including military caregiving as part of its family leave purposes.
  • The state received 10 out of 15 points for its job-protected medical leave, losing points for only meeting the FMLA employer limit (50 or more employees), rather than applying to companies with fewer than 50 workers.
  • Rhode Island received a perfect 15 of 15 score for its parental leave laws.
  • The state also received all 15 possible points for being one of 10 states offering sick days protections. It also received all possible points for permitting flexible sick time to care for a sick family member or child. Sick time applies to workers that need to address their own or a family members care, domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking and a public health emergency.
  • The report also awarded all possible points to Rhode Island for its unemployment insurance policy, which makes UI benefits available to those returning to the job market after caring for a family member due to illness or disability.

Public sector:

Rhode Island scored less well for its public-sector worker protections in the report, although public-sector scores were weighted less than private-sector policies in the report.

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  • While the state allows its workers to be eligible for the private-sector family leave and paid medical leave if the employer or collective bargaining unit opted into the system, it received no points for not requiring the policy.
  • The Ocean State also received five of a possible 25 points for its family and/or medical leave policies for state workers.
  • The state received points for its flexible sick time policies for state workers as well as its UI laws modernization – the same as the private sector points the state received.

How Rhode Island compared with the nation:

Massachusetts was the highest-ranked state in the nation this year with 160 points, an A. The District of Colombia, also rated in the report, was the only other jurisdiction to receive an A, with a score of 155.

Washington earned a 135 score, an A-, followed by Rhode Island at 125, also an A-. Connecticut was the third-highest rated New England state with a score of 90, a B+, followed by Vermont with a score of 60, a B.

Maine was the fifth-highest rated state in New England with a score of 55, a B-, followed by New Hampshire with a score of 15, a D+.

Nine states in the nation received a score of zero for a grade of F. They were Alabama, Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

Chris Bergenheim is the PBN web editor. Email him at Bergenheim@PBN.com.

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