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Mom-mentum Advocacy eNews
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Greetings!
This Father's Day brings a deluge of news about dads and how much they need paid family leave too. After all, mothers don't exist without fathers, and the whole family is impacted by the need for both care and income. Policy can play a meaningful role, and some policy makers are trying to do their part. Get a frosty glass of iced tea, find a cool place to sit down, and read on. You can now sign up to get interesting news and updates delivered to your inbox on the most recent policy issues that concern you. Click here to sign up. Mom on, Valerie Young Your (Wo)man in Washington |
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 DC DISPATCH - #LeadOnLeave
The federal government is investing in paid family leave, even though the US still has no law. "WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Department of Labor announced today that $1.25 million will be made available to research and analyze how paid leave programs can be developed and implemented across the country. The department's Women's Bureau will administer the funding opportunity." States can apply and win grants with which to fund the creation and implementation of programs for paid time off, which has been shown time and again to save businesses money, keep families financially stable, and allow care for new children, or injured or ill family members or aging parents. California, Rhode Island and New Jersey are the only states to offer it so far. The Obama Administration hopes this seed money will move other states in the same direction, as Congress remains paralyzed on this issue. |
OREGON GOES FOR PAID SICK DAYS
Oregon has become the fourth state to enact paid sick days.
About 500,000 of Oregon workers will be affected, as they are half the private sector workforce and 80% of low wage workers who currently don't have access to any paid time off for illness, their own or a family member's. "The bill mandates that employers with more than 10 workers must offer up to five days of paid sick leave; businesses with less than 10 employees still must provide protected sick leave, though it may be unpaid. Both full-time and part-time workers are covered", says The American Prospect.
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THE "GOOD DAD" AS PROVIDER OF CARE
Fatherhood is changing. Policies need to change too. Families still depend on dads for financial reasons, but also look to him as a caregiver. Many fathers want to fill that role, but face backlash at work when they do. According to a new book by CNN's Josh Levs, "men who take career breaks or reduce their hours for family reasons get sharply reduced earnings when they return to their previous schedules." Working parents across the board are going to have to push for the changes they want to see in the workplace.
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PATERNITY LEAVE = GOOD BUSINESS
Some big companies are working out ways for fathers to deal with family demands. Google, Johnson and Johnson, Virgin Management and Twitter are starting or expanding their paid paternity leave programs. From a whole year (Virgin) to four weeks (Goldman Sachs) the offerings vary greatly, but at least it's a sign that caregiving isn't something only moms do these days. Yet it's not typical -- we've got a long push ahead. "Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows only 13 % of U.S. full-time employees had access to paid family leave in 2012 -- and it s likely that much of that was maternity leave" according to the Washington Post.
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In theory, we all have a vote, we all have a voice,
and we are all equal in this democracy. But does that play out in fact? Not so much. According to Vox.com, women are the most powerless group, in spite of the fact that we are the majority of the population and more of us vote than men do. "Among the demographics Stephanopoulos looked at -- including racial minorities and low-income individuals -- women have the least influence on policy at both the state and federal level. In cases where there's major disagreement between men and women, the chance of a policy taking effect falls the more it's supported by women, and it falls dramatically:
from 80 percent to about 10 percent."
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