California residents can take up to six weeks of paid family leave per year to care for a seriously-ill relative, even those residing abroad, through the state’s Employment Development Department.
California’s Paid Family Leave Act allows workers to receive 60 to 70 percent of their salaries – the highest in the nation – under the provisions of the law. Benefits range from a minimum of $50 to a maximum of $1,216 per week, based on wages.
“You can use paid family leave even if you’re caring for a parent overseas as long as you have paid into the system. This is your money,” Kacie Finnicum, a representative for the Employment Development Department, told reporters at a Feb. 1 briefing organized by Ethnic Media Services.