Paid family leave takes effect in California - Blogging Baby - www.bloggingbaby.com File this one under “It’s about freaking time!”: On Thursday, paid family leave took effect in the state of California. While such family leave has long been a fact of life in such countries as Germany and France, California is the first state in the US to require employers to offer 6 weeks of paid leave each year for parents to either care for their newborn or ill child or adopt a child.