A bipartisan effort to better support military families will help ensure military spouses are eligible for key protections that have positively impacted the lives of millions of workers without imposing undue burden on employers.

The Ensuring Access to FMLA Leave for Military Spouses Act, introduced July 10 by Reps. Marilyn Strickland (D-Wash.) and Don Bacon (R-Neb.), would reduce the qualifying time for which a military spouse must be employed prior to taking leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) from 12 months to 90 days.

The FMLA, signed into law in 1993, guarantees eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for specific family and medical reasons.

To be eligible for FMLA leave, employees must have worked for their employer for at least 12 months and worked at least 1,250 hours over the past 12 months. For military spouses subject to frequent, military-mandated moves, achieving eligibility is a challenge.