by Maya Bendotoff
AB 1606, a bill signed by Governor Brown in June, 2014 will open the pathway to additional paid bonding time for new parents. According to the provisions of the new law, academic employees may take up to 30 days paid in a school year to bond with a new child. This applies to both biological parents and non-biological (adoptive) parents. As the press release from Rocky Chavez, the bill sponsor, explains, “Providing paid leave to our families is critical to strengthening the bond that forms between parents and children. That bond is vital to the long-term health and well-being of children as they grow, and helps build strong families. This is a common sense, cost-neutral measure that will improve the lives of children and help our communities.” The new legislation goes into effect when our current collective bargaining agreement expires (July 1, 2016) unless we can get the District to mutually agree to make the changes sooner.