Can both parents claim EDD PFL for baby bonding without reducing mom's benefits?

yes both parents get their own 8 weeks completely seperate! my wife and i did this last yr. your HR is probably confusing it with FMLA which is different. PFL is california state thing and FMLA is federal. call EDD to double check but i'm 99% sure

Your HR department is confusing a few different leave types. Here's the breakdown: 1. California Paid Family Leave (PFL): EACH parent gets their own 8 weeks of paid baby bonding time. These are completely separate entitlements. One parent taking leave does not reduce the other parent's available time. 2. FMLA/CFRA: These job protection laws may have shared family entitlements that your HR is referring to, but they're separate from PFL benefits. Both you and your husband can absolutely take the full 8 weeks of PFL benefits for baby bonding. You can even take them at the same time or different times within the first year after birth. I just went through this with my wife last year - we both received our full PFL benefits without any reduction.

Congrats on the baby!! We just had our second in January and yes both parents get their own 8 weeks! Your HR is definitely confusing something. My husband and I both took our full PFL benefits at the same time for 6 weeks and then he went back while I took my last 2 weeks. Best time ever even though we were exhausted lol

Here's the definitive answer: In California, each parent is entitled to their own 8 weeks of Paid Family Leave for baby bonding, completely independent of each other. This is clearly stated on the EDD website. What your HR department might be referring to is FMLA/CFRA, which provides job protection but works differently. Under FMLA, married couples who work for the same employer might have to share 12 weeks between them - but this doesn't apply to you since you work for different companies. Also, this has nothing to do with the PFL benefit amount or duration. Those 8 weeks are yours, period, regardless of what your spouse does. If you're trying to contact EDD to confirm this and having trouble getting through, I used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an EDD representative within 15 minutes after I'd been trying for days. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/DOLxZQb92wM?si=6N1iCQ3a8Cdb2Ay5. Totally worth it to get clear answers directly from EDD.

my friend told me her and her husband both got 8 weeks each but then her company made her use vacation time for part of it?? something about FMLA and PFl being different things. its all so confusing. good luck figuring it out lol

I just went through this exact situation!!! Your HR is WRONG and mine was too! They kept telling me that my husband taking PFL would reduce my time, but after fighting with them and finally getting through to EDD, I confirmed that we BOTH get our full 8 weeks, PERIOD. It's literally the law in California. What tripped everyone up was that I first had pregnancy disability leave (which is separate) and THEN my 8 weeks of baby bonding PFL. My husband just had his 8 weeks of bonding. We timed it so we had 4 weeks together and then he took his last 4 weeks when I went back to work. DON'T let HR confuse you! They're thinking of FMLA which is totally different!!!!!

This is such a common misunderstanding! Let me clear it up: CALIFORNIA PFL: Both parents get separate 8-week entitlements, period. One doesn't affect the other. FMLA/CFRA: Job protection laws that CAN have shared limits if you work for the same employer (which you don't). Your HR is mixing these up because many employers don't properly train their staff on California-specific benefits. I deal with this constantly at my HR consulting job. The best part is you can structure your leaves however works best for your family - overlapping, consecutive, or split periods within the first year after birth. Just make sure both claims are filed properly with EDD!