GAO's Cost Estimate of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1989 (H.R. 770)

GAO discussed the annual employer costs of proposed family and medical leave legislation. GAO estimated that: (1) the annual cost to employers with 50 or more workers would be $188,000 for continued health insurance for employees on unpaid medical leave; (2) the cost to employers for workers to care for new children would approximate $90 million annually, with about 840,000 women likely to take advantage of such unpaid leave; (3) employers would pay about $10 million annually in health coverage for employees who used unpaid leave to care for seriously ill children, and about 60,000 workers would likely take an average of 7.8 weeks of such leave; (4) leave to care for seriously ill parents would cost about $35 million annually, with about 165,000 eligible workers using such leave; and (5) temporary medical leave would cost employers approximately $53 million annually, with about 610,000 workers taking an average of 8.9 weeks of such leave.