In September, Stacy Ehrisman-Mickle, an immigration lawyer, took a job with two brothers on a case.

She immediately filed requests to delay any hearings that would interfere with her six week maternity leave, but Judge J. Dan Pelletier Sr. refused her request, simply telling her that it was not a good reason to postpone the hearing.

Her husband was away and she had no family in the area so she was forced to bring her four-week-old baby to court with her.

When the baby began to cry Judge Pelletier scolded her in front of many people for being “inappropriate”. He also told her that her pediatrician must be disappointed in her for bringing her child into contact with the germs of the court. He finally delayed the hearing and Ehrisman-Mickle filed a complaint against him.

This news story has prompted many people to ask about the state of U.S maternity leave. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act is supposed to “forbid discrimination based on pregnancy when it comes to any aspect of employment” but the U.S. has one of the worst policies for maternity leave. We are one of three countries, including Papa New Guninea and Swaziland, to not ensure paid maternal leave.

New parents are only promised up to 12 unpaid weeks before they could lose their job. Few workers in this country are granted paid family leave and 25 percent of women are forced to quit their jobs in order to take care of their new child.

Because it is often the mother who has to quit her job to care for the child, this system promotes gender inequality as well as makes matters more difficult for the family.

Having paid leave allows the new parents to avoid worrying about finances while they bond with their baby.

In the Czech Republic, women are able to take up to four years of paid maternity leave. In fact, it is quite common. Fathers are also allowed to take this leave instead of the mother. In Austria, mothers can choose between one and three years to be with their children.

The United States’ parental leave policy makes it incredibly difficult for men and women who need to work to make ends meet but want to start a family. They need both salaries to support themselves and can’t afford to take time off without being paid.

They end up spending the precious time with their newborn worrying about money and whether or not they are able to provide everything their child needs.

Because of this, couples may wait until they have worked longer and are financially stable before they start a family. Instead of allowing new parents to worry, the U.S. should institute a national law that permits a standard amount of time for paid maternity leave like most other countries have.

I think it’s horrible that women and men do not have the reassurance that when they have a family they will be provided for, at least for the first weeks after their baby’s arrival.

They should be able to chose to spend more time with their child without feeling pressured to get back to work and make money.

For a country that promotes family values, we certainly make it difficult for parents to take care of their kids.