No pay. That's definitely where the U.S. is not so good as other places. (Our taxes are lower though, so there's that...)

We saved up so we could afford to have DH take the time off. He first took his paid vacation time, then went to unpaid leave.

12 weeks is the limit of unpaid leave protected by the FMLA. It can be used for any medical or family issue that would require time off. It doesn't have to be used all at once, but can be split up over the course of the year to cover something like debilitating chemotherapy treatments, for example. Anyone working for a company larger than 50 people, I believe, is covered under the law. Companies smaller than that are not required to comply with the law in any way.

The big thing is that the company cannot fire you. Your job is protected. Before the FMLA, that was not guaranteed.

I know very few husbands in the U.S. who take more than a couple of days off for a new baby. It's usually just not feasible financially for most families to have both adults in the family not working for any amount of time.

No paid leave at all is granted by the government or by anyone else that I've ever heard of. It simply isn't done here.

I negotiated for 12 weeks off from my job with no pay after my vacation time was gone. 6-8 weeks is the more common amount, I think. Then I went to working half-time from home for a year before I gave it up to stay home full-time.

So, yes, very different from Canada! (Sadly!)

Kriston