Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Paralyzed Veterans of America Calls on the House and Senate to Pass the Wounded Warriors Federal Leave Act

Paralyzed Veterans of America issued the following today:






Paralyzed Veterans of America Calls on the House and Senate to Pass the Wounded Warriors Federal Leave Act


soldier shadowParalyzed Veterans of America voiced strong support January 27, 2015, for the bipartisan “Wounded Warriors Federal Leave Act,” introduced by Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass) in the House and Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) in the Senate.


The bill, which was passed by the House Oversight and Government Reform committee, would allow service-connected disabled veterans who become federal employees to accumulate paid sick leave during treatment.  The Wounded Warriors Federal Leave Act would credit veterans with 104 hours starting out to make up for the accelerated rate of sick leave these veterans use to receive treatment for service-incurred disabilities, when compared with non-veteran federal employees. The bill is now scheduled for a full House vote. If successfully passed, it will go to the senate for consideration.


“Paralyzed Veterans of America has long sought to level the playing field for veterans with disabling conditions who work, which most often involves removing disability as a barrier to substantive employment,” said Sherman Gillums, deputy executive director of Paralyzed Veterans of America and director of the PAVE Program. “This bill, if passed by Congress, will allow veterans who are in transition or may be awaiting a VA disability rating to start a good career while receiving regular medical care and treatment without penalty. Presently, newly hired veterans must be placed in ‘leave without pay’ status to keep appointments. But working a job versus receiving treatment for service-incurred conditions should not be an either-or proposition for those who’ve served."


Paralyzed Veterans now calls on the House of Representatives to immediately consider and pass the "Wounded Warrior Federal Leave Act." We also call on the Senate to quickly take up and pass the companion bill--S. 242.


Learn more about our work on Capitol Hill on behalf of veterans