Tell your U.S. Senators that they must act quickly to support child care
and also to extend and expand access to pandemic paid leave before
school starts. Otherwise, there is no way schools, or anything else,
will be able to safely reopen.
[ [link removed] ]Chairs in a classroom
[ [link removed] ]TAKE ACTION
[ [link removed] ]Take Action

Dear Friend,

It’s a back to school season like none we have ever experienced before.
Instead of reviewing school supply lists, we’re dealing with a lot of
uncertainty and scrambling to figure out what to do if (!?!?) or when
(!?!?) our schools and child care centers reopen.

This year the supplies that we need the most are things like paid
family/medical leave, paid sick days, and massive investments in child
care - and they are in *very* short supply.

Congress has a role in fixing this problem and they need to [ [link removed] ]ACT NOW.

[ [link removed] ]→ Tell your U.S. Senators that they must act quickly to support child
care and also to extend and expand access to pandemic paid leave before
school starts. Otherwise, there is no way schools, or anything else, will
be able to safely reopen.

One thing is certain: We can’t open school without paid leave for
everyone. And we can’t open child care without massive investments in our
child care infrastructure, including ensuring all early educators have
access to paid sick days when they need them. [ [link removed] ]But the limited pandemic
paid leave provisions Congress passed in the spring are set to expire at
the end of December, and so far no relief package has had nearly enough
support for child care! It’s time to speak out!

This week the U.S. Senate will start working on what is likely to be the
*last* COVID-19 relief legislation they will deal with for the rest of the
year, and [ [link removed] ]that package must include massive investments in child care,
and expanded access to paid leave.

The need is frighteningly urgent. The limited paid leave program Congress
passed in April leaves out over 106 million working people. Put another
way: Right now approximately 83% of U.S. workers are left out of pandemic
paid leave and if they don’t close the loopholes, then these families will
continue to be left out as COVID-19 spikes in new places across the
country. [1] It’s not sustainable for families, and it’s not acceptable.
We’ve got to expand these policies quickly.

Families like Te’Jal’s, a MomsRising member, are suffering. Te’Jal’s
family was left out of the Families First emergency paid leave benefits
because her employer has more than 500 employees. Her two-year-old son’s
child care center has closed due to the pandemic, and she is struggling to
work full-time from home and care for him at the same time. She used her
limited sick time when she and her son both had the flu earlier this year,
so she worries how her family will manage if she or her son becomes
seriously ill.

[ [link removed] ]→ Now is the time to really amp up the pressure on the U.S. Senate to
act.

The plain truth is that without paid sick days and family and medical
leave, we can’t safely reopen -- especially as pandemic death rates
continue to rise. [2] In fact, right now the majority of workers still
don’t have access to paid leave to stay home to protect themselves and
others if they get sick. [3] And we KNOW that access to paid sick days and
paid leave helps reduce the spread of viral infections. For example,
states and cities that have passed paid sick time legislation have seen
their flu rates decrease by up to 40%! [4]

We need to build in protections in the next coronavirus relief package!
Unfortunately, the first paid leave law that Congress passed doesn’t go
nearly far enough -- leaving out over 100 million working people -- that’s
almost a third of the entire nation’s population, including children. Even
worse, these meager paid leave laws expire at the end of 2020, right when
we may be facing a new spike in COVID-19. [5]

And no package passed by Congress yet has come close to providing the
support we need for child care. The pandemic has made it harder than ever
for families to access affordable, high-quality child care. While some
child care providers remained open during the pandemic to care for the
children of essential workers, many more have stayed closed and will
likely close permanently. According to a study released just last week by
the National Association of Young Children, two out of every five child
care programs are expected to close their programs forever if elected
leaders don’t act now to stabilize the industry. [6] And for those child
care providers who are currently open or are looking at re-opening amidst
concerns about health and safety and lower enrollment, which will decrease
revenue at the same time costs for cleaning and health and safety supplies
are going up. [7]

Without child care or school, parents are struggling to work, attend
college, participate in job training, and take care of other household
responsibilities. This is getting worse as more workplaces reopen.

[ [link removed] ]→ Tell your U.S. Senators they must act quickly to extend and expand
access to pandemic paid leave before school starts and they need to invest
in child care. Otherwise, there is no way schools, or anything else, will
be able to safely reopen.

Our senators have seen a lot of research, but your personal experiences
are what stick in their minds the most when considering what to do. So
taking just a few moments to add your name to our letter and add your own
note sharing your experience goes a long way towards influencing lawmakers
and pressuring them to do the right thing.

There’s no time to waste. Massive investments in early learning and access
to comprehensive and permanent paid sick days and paid family and medical
leave will be crucial for reopening states safely: This virus hasn’t gone
away, and won’t anytime soon, and people will need time to recover without
worrying about losing their jobs.

Together we’re a powerful force for women and families, in good times and
in bad.

- Ruth, Nina, Christina, Tina, Kristin, and the rest of the
MomsRising/MamásConPoder Team

 

P.S. Breonna Taylor was a dreamer, a go-getter, she was an award-winning
EMT, an essential worker at two hospitals during the pandemic. She was
beloved by her friends and family. On March 13th, she was killed in her
home, in her bed. It's been over 100 days and no charges have been filed
against the officers responsible for her death. We are heartbroken,
outraged and horrified. This miscarriage of justice has gone on too long.
Breonna is dead, and the perpetrators are facing no charges. [ [link removed] ]Take
Action here!

P.P.S. [ [link removed] ]Know Your Rights! Click here to find out if you are covered by
the limited paid sick days and paid family leave.

P.P.P.S. MomsRising joined early learning experts in the field to develop
a short book that centers the lives and challenges of working families and
child care providers amidst today's unprecedented public health and
economic crisis. You can read here: [ [link removed] ]Child Care In Crisis: Stories From
the Field

References:

[1] [ [link removed] ]Center for American Progress: Coronavirus Paid Leave Exemptions
exclude millions of workers
[2] [ [link removed] ]Washington Post: U.S. Sets another single-day total
[3] [ [link removed] ]KQED: Even With New Federal Coronavirus Bill, Most Workers Get No
Additional Sick Leave
[4] [ [link removed] ]VOX CEPER: The pros and cons of sick days
[5] [ [link removed] ]Center for American Progress: Coronavirus Paid Leave Exemptions
exclude millions of workers
[6] [ [link removed] ]National Association for the Education of Young Children: Holding
on until help comes: A survey reveals child care’s fight to survive
[7] [ [link removed] ]Zero to Three: How COVID-19 is impacting child care providers

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