WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) -- The issue of paid parental leave has boiled to the forefront of public discussion around the Wichita Fire Department's contract negotiations.

Despite Sedgwick County Fire and the Wichita Police Department both receiving paid parental leave within the last two years, WFD has to rely on accrued sick and vacation days. Longtime firefighter for WFD Marci Pearson's post on Facebook Sunday brought the issue to the top of discussion.

"It is a 'brotherhood,' but I feel like I belong, so that part has never been an issue," Pearson said.

According to WFD leadership, just 10 of their 488 firefighters are women, or roughly two percent. That number, Pearson argues, is partially due to her department's lack of paid parental leave.

She says that for any mother, recovering afte

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