So, how does Rubio propose to create this paid leave for people? By giving a 25 percent tax credit for companies that offer a minimum of four weeks of paid leave. The credit would be capped at 12 weeks and $4,000 per employee annually. Rubio says his plan would apply to all "employee arrangements" and would be available to new parents, employees with serious illnesses, military families, and those taking care of sick parents, spouses, and children.

But Rubio’s plan would do little to bring forth the changes he promises and Americans want to see. History tells us that tax credits do not incentivize companies to do right by their employees. As The New York Times reported, tax breaks meant to encourage companies to provide childcare and hire veterans or people with disabilities have largely been ineffective. Indeed, since 1981 the federal government has offered a tax credit for companies that provide on-site childcare, but today only 7 percent of employers offer that benefit. To make matters worse, an employer-based tax credit could exacerbate inequities in access to paid family leave by encouraging employers who are already doing right by their workers to offer even better benefits while it does nothing to require less generous employers (particularly those relying on low-income workers) to expand access.

Many of the 77.2 million hourly-wage workers—three million of whom earn at or below the federal minimum wage of $7.25—are unlikely to benefit from Rubio’s plan. Nearly one in five working mothers with young children works in low-wage jobs, one in three lives in poverty, and in every state across the country, at least 60 percent of low-wage workers are women (even though they represent half or less of the overall workforce in every state). As Vicki Shabo, the vice president of the National Partnership for Women and Families, said, "Leave provided as a result of tax credits won’t reach the people who most need and are least likely to have access to paid leave—low-wage and part-time workers, who are disproportionately female and people of color."

Rubio’s proposal will also not guarantee benefits for the millions of independent contractors who make up a large and growing percent of the American workforce—last year amounting to 54 million individuals or 34 percent of workers. Seventy percent of young professionals aspire to be their own boss, and 90 percent of workers affiliated with Freelancers Union report they would not choose to return to traditional work. It’s anticipated that by 2020 independent contractors will comprise 40 percent of the workforce. Many of these workers do not have access to employer-based benefits and Rubio’s proposal would simply reinforce a system that fails to meet the needs of this new American economy.

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Under a Rubio presidency, the United States’ will continue to be the only Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) country that does not mandate paid leave. On average, mothers in OECD countries are entitled to 17 weeks of paid leave with maternity benefits replacing an average of 78 percent of earnings. Most OECD countries offer paid leave to both parents, with an average parental leave of approximately 37 weeks combined—an amount unimaginable to most Americans. Some countries like Austria, Germany, and Japan offer extra time off to families where both parents take their allotted parental leave. This normalizes parental leave, helps equalize parenting roles inside the family, and creates more equitable workplaces. And beyond paid leave, OECD countries on average offer 86 weeks of job-protected leave. France offers 162. The United States offers 12, without pay.