Many US parents do not know they are eligible for benefits while their children are at home

Back-to-school season looks very different this year as school districts across the country enter a new world of distance learning, social distancing class attendance, or a combination of the two. CNBC.

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According to a Care.com survey of 1000 parents with children under 15, 73% of parents said they plan to make major changes in their professional lives to compensate for their lack of childcare in the coming school year, and 15% of them say, that they are considering leaving work completely.

Despite all these new concerns, little has changed since spring with regard to legislation that provides support for working parents who are forced to stay at home while their children stay at home. Here's what you need to know.

If you are a parent and work full-time or part-time, you can take paid parental leave at home under the Family Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA).

The law, passed in March, provides two weeks (up to 80 hours) of emergency paid sick leave with up to $ 200 a day if you are unable to work because you must be caring for a child under the age of 18 whose school or institution care facilities are closed or unavailable due to the pandemic.

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Parents can take advantage of this vacation option if schools and kindergartens are physically closed, even if schools provide virtual teaching. If the schools are partially open, you will be able to take paid leave on days when the school is closed and your children are at home. You can also prove that due to the pandemic, your normal childcare options are not available, including arrangements with a nanny, au pair, grandparents, or a daycare that is open but filled with children.

If you have worked for at least 30 calendar days, you can get up to an additional 10 weeks of paid and sick leave with up to $ 200 a day if you cannot work because you have to take care of a child whose school or care closed or unavailable due to the pandemic.

These 10 weeks of extended family leave can be taken intermittently with the employer's permission. So, for example, if school is in-person three days a week and virtual the remaining two days, you can take paid leave twice a week until you've exhausted your 12 weeks of leave.

If you have already taken vacation under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) in the past 12 months, the amount of time you can take vacation during a pandemic will be reduced accordingly.

The main advantage of this program is that, unlike applying for unemployment insurance, family leave allows you to keep your job and, importantly, during a global pandemic, your health insurance and other employer benefits.

However, not everyone can afford such a vacation. The Paid Leave Act only applies to certain public employers and private employers with fewer than 500 employees. Small businesses with fewer than 50 employees may be exempted from parental leave if they prove it could endanger their business. Some health care providers and emergency workers are also not eligible for this leave.

The restrictions mean that the Center for American Progress estimates that up to 106 million workers are not eligible for paid leave under federal law.

Ruth Martin, senior vice president and chief specialist for workplace justice at advocacy group MomsRising, says many working parents remain unaware of their FFCRA paid leave options. For all the challenges posed by the pandemic, "it is difficult for a working parent to simply understand what lies ahead."

"We're very concerned about the lack of awareness about this - it's concerning," Martin said. “This is the first time the country has had a nationwide limited paid leave program.” Since the law was passed in March and came into effect two weeks later, there was not much time left for a massive public education campaign.”

“If you believe you are eligible for FFCRA leave, you should inform your employer directly,” Martin says.

If you lose your job because you need to provide full-time care while your children are at home due to school and - in most states - daycare closures as a result of the pandemic, you may qualify for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). for up to 39 weeks.

You may also be eligible for Unemployment Insurance benefits and receive Partial Unemployment Insurance benefits if you have to shorten your working hours to look after your children at home for part of the week.

However, the March CARES Extended Unemployment Benefit Act can only apply to parents of young children or dependents who need constant supervision. The law states that “to be eligible for the primary caregiver's responsibilities, your childcare must require constant and constant attention that you cannot perform your normal work functions at home.”

Parents with children who are old enough to take care of themselves for most of the day are most likely not eligible for a PUA.

Some legislators are working to extend eligibility for the PUA program, especially for the new school year.

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Martin says parents should consider both of these federal programs to better understand childcare options for the new school year.

“We tell parents: See if you can use the law for family leave options. Then contact your state's unemployment office to see if you can use unemployment benefits, says Martin. “The third thing we emphasize is that you should call your U.S. senator and ask him to get to work.” Families are struggling and the burden is falling on working parents, and we need Congress to get to work to support them.”

The paid leave options provided by the FFCRA and the Increased Unemployment Insurance Benefit under the PUA remain in effect until December 31, 2020, without any additional provisions passed by Congress and the White House. Weeks of heated talks to stimulate the economy have led to a deadlock, and the Senate is going on vacation until September.

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