ATLANTA – State Representative Katie Dempsey (R-Rome) recently received awards from two different organizations for her work on House Bill 432, the Family Care Act.

“I am honored to receive these awards from the Interfaith Children’s Movement and Georgia Women for a Change,” said Rep. Dempsey. “This legislation creates an honest and transparent relationship between employers and employees and promotes a family friendly work place for both men and women.”

The Interfaith Children’s Movement (ICM) presented Rep. Dempsey with its Parental Nurture Award on October 24. The Board of Directors of the ICM chose Rep. Dempsey for this award to recognize the service she provided to Georgia’s children and families by championing the Family Care Act. ICM is an advocacy organization dedicated to improving the well-being of children in Georgia. Past recipients of the ICM Parental Nurture Award include state Senator Renee Unterman (R-Buford) and First Lady Mary Perdue.

Rep. Dempsey’s work on the Family Care Act was also recognized by Georgia Women for a Change on October 26. Georgia Women for a Change annually honors a legislator who it believes goes above and beyond to advance issues important to women and girls. This year the organization chose to recognize Rep. Dempsey for her leadership on the Family Care Act.

Rep. Dempsey introduced the Family Care Act during the 2012 legislative session, during which time the House Industrial Relation Committee approved the bill. Although the legislation did not pass the General Assembly, Rep. Dempsey continues to work with her fellow legislators and interested organizations in creating a revised version of the bill that could be introduce in 2013. The legislation was drafted to allow workers with eligible sick leave from work to use their sick leave to care for a sick child, spouse or parent. The bill did not require employers to provide sick leave for employees. Rather, it merely stated that if an employer provides its employees with sick leave, then they must allow their employees to use earned sick leave to provide care for immediate family members. Should an employee properly use his or her earned sick leave in such a way, the Family Care Act would prevent the employer from terminating, demoting, suspending, disciplining, or otherwise discriminating against the employee.

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