Gerdau Macsteel Sued by Father Over ‘Baby Bonding’ Leave Policy

Gerdau Macsteel Inc. treated its non-union employee birth fathers unequally by denying them the same paid parental leave that was provided to birth mothers, a proposed class lawsuit charged.

Nicholas Johnson, a former non-union research and development technical specialist at the company’s mill in Monroe, Mich., filed the suit Tuesday in federal court in Detroit. He said he requested parental leave in November 2021 when his wife gave birth to their baby, but he was only granted 30 days of unpaid paternity leave.

That contrasts with the “much more generous 12-14 weeks of paid maternity leave” that Gerdau Macsteel allowed ...