It’s been 32 years since the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was signed into law, and some three-quarters of employers believe the program is “outdated and should be updated,” according to a recent survey from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).

Efforts to modernize the FMLA with the passage of a paid leave program didn’t materialize in Congress last year, and it appears unlikely that lawmakers will prioritize such a policy in 2025. While SHRM has been lobbying for changes to the FMLA, its head of government affairs, Emily Dickens, contended that “you can’t always think the federal government can solve everything.”

Absent a sudden expansion of the FMLA, Dickens said SHRM is encouraging employers to consider offering benefits that will meet the needs of a wide range of caregivers. If paid leave isn’t possible, HR can consider offering benefits with a lower barrier to entry, such as mental or financial health resources, she suggested.

For more ways employers can get creative with the caregiving benefits they offer, keep reading here.—CV

There’s nothing quite like a Spanish siesta, and workers in Spain may soon have time to enjoy them more.

Earlier this month, lawmakers in Spain approved a bill that would reduce the average workweek from 40 hours to 37.5 hours, Euroenews reported.

The reduced schedule already applies to civil servants and certain sectors in the country including education, but the new bill would expand the policy to retail, manufacturing, and hospitality, impacting roughly 12.5 million workers.

The bill will have to make its way through Parliament where it faces an uncertain future, and potential amendments to appease smaller political parties. While labor unions and the country’s socialist prime minister support the measure, business leaders and more conservative politicians oppose the bill.

For more on this latest attempt abroad to shorten the workweek, keep reading here.—KP

The fastball, the curveball, the changeup are all excellent pitches. But the best pitch is the one that wins.

At the UNLEASH America Conference and Expo in Las Vegas last week, the best pitch in HR Tech belonged to talent acquisition start-up HireBrain.

The hiring enablement platform competed in Las Vegas in a start-up competition at the HR technology show. The start-up, founded in late 2019, beat out four competitors in a fast, but high-stakes, pitch competition. Hirebrain works alongside an organization’s ATS platform to engage all stakeholders in the hiring process for a more efficient hire.

For more on how Hirebrain’s hiring solution aims for the highest likelihood of success, keep reading here.—AD