SMACNA and SMART recently announced the creation of the SMART/SMACNA Maternity Program, which is a new paid maternity leave program that is available to areas through the Sheet Metal Industry Labor-Management Cooperation Fund.
The SMART/SMACNA Maternity Program provides the following benefits to eligible SMART female members in good standing:
- ▪ Up to $800 per week of paid maternity leave benefits (through adopting local health and welfare funds) for up to 6 months.
- ▪ This includes up to 6 weeks of “post-delivery benefits” (8 weeks for a cesarean section) and up to 20 weeks of “lost-time benefits,” which are pre-delivery benefits for workers who are certified by their physician as unable to work as a result of their pregnancy. The maximum weekly benefit is 6 months (or 26 weeks).
The benefits are not paid to members directly. Instead, the LMCF reimburses the local health and welfare fund (“H&W fund”) for providing qualifying “paid maternity leave benefits.”
Areas that would like to adopt the SMART/SMACNA Maternity Program must have their proposed plan amendments reviewed by the Fund. Once adopted, the SMART/SMACNA Maternity Program will reimburse local H&W funds for qualifying payments made to eligible SMART female members in good standing under the program.
To help contractors and associations understand the new program, SMART and SMACNA have developed a list of frequently asked questions (“FAQs”) regarding the SMART/SMACNA Maternity Program. Click here to review those FAQs. Also, take a moment to review a webinar on the benefit program.
