WNBA training camp starts April 30, and the Phoenix Mercury will have Brittney Griner but will be without star Skylar Diggins-Smith. She remains out on maternity leave, as per basketball insider Khristina Williams.
Diggins-Smith announced at the end of 2022 that she and her husband were expecting their second child. When Diggins-Smith had her first child in 2019, the maternity leave policy was not as robust as in the current CBA. As of 2020, the CBA guarantees players fully paid maternity leave, upgraded two-bedroom housing for children, a $5,000 stipend for child care and places within the arenas for nursing mothers, among other things.
Skylar Diggins-Smith will remain out on maternity leave, as training camp starts tomorrow.
— Khristina Williams (@Khristina) April 29, 2023
In 2019, Diggins-Smith told ESPN she was bringing her requests about upgraded rights for mothers to the negotiating table during CBA discussions.
“I’ve already reached out to a few moms,” she said. “As we negotiate with the CBA, how can we improve things? It’s about prioritization; we can’t have everything. But I’m going to bring that portion to the table because I’m a mom.”
The CBA was ratified in 2020 and Diggins-Smith played a part in securing the upgrades for mothers and players on maternity leave. Now players can make the decisions that are right for their families without feeling pressure to return to work right away.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=650261897]