The politics of family leave

There are many who would insist that the best laws from Washington, D.C., are those that aren't passed. A singular problem with many of the laws that are placed on the books is that their intended achievements are frequently largely overcome by unintended results. Such may be the case with the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. For all the good this law has done for those who need to take leaves of absence, it has added greatly to the woes of those who remain behind, the author says. Managers, she insists, will have to work diligently with the reactions of those who must accept additional workloads to accommodate the leaves of their colleagues.