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Paid leave: Will stronger military families mean a stronger military?

When Lt. Col. Ryan Russell and his wife, Lt. Col. Meredith Beavers, had their first child, he was entitled to three weeks off from the Air Force, and he fretted about missing work during that time. 

Now the U.S. military’s congressionally mandated family leave policy, expanded earlier this year, doubles paid time off for mothers to 12 weeks and gives new fathers the same amount.

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Men and women make big work commitments in military service, but they often also have big commitments in family life. A new paid leave policy aims to help military families find a better balance.

So, with the birth of their second child, Lieutenant Colonel Russell had 12 weeks off. What he discovered in using it, he says, was a more balanced parenting relationship with his partner and a much closer bond with the baby. “I haven’t focused on work,” he marvels, “and it’s been fantastic.”

Calls for better treatment of new military parents had been percolating up from within the ranks to become a driver of the change. 

The point is to strengthen the bond between service members and their loved ones, military officials say. But it’s not lost on them, either, that the new policy could also help retain service members in an era when the U.S. military is struggling to meet its recruiting goals.  

When Lt. Col. Ryan Russell and his wife, Lt. Col. Meredith Beavers, had their first child, he was entitled to three weeks off from the Air Force. He’s not sure whether he took all the leave or not.

“Those 21 days were great – don’t get me wrong – but my mind was always focused on, ‘I’m missing just enough work to be a pain when I get back,’” he says. 

With the birth of their second child, new Pentagon regulations granted Lieutenant Colonel Russell 12 weeks off. What he discovered in using it, he says, was a sense of “peace.” 

Why We Wrote This

A story focused on

Men and women make big work commitments in military service, but they often also have big commitments in family life. A new paid leave policy aims to help military families find a better balance.

Not only has he developed a more balanced parenting relationship with his wife, but the leave has also allowed him, he says, to “truly feel like I know [his newborn] much better” than he knew his elder son in those early months.

And despite fears that it could set back his career, coupled with the guilt he felt when he learned that he would be among the first male service members granted such leave under the new policy, he’s managed to take full advantage. “I haven’t focused on work,” he marvels, “and it’s been fantastic.”

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