Urge Congress to support working families by passing permanent paid family
and medical leave for all.
[ [link removed] ]Take Action Now
[ [link removed] ]SIGN NOW
Dear Friend,
Did you hear the news that Amazon is no longer going to provide paid leave
to workers who test positive for Covid-19 and need to miss work? [ [link removed] ]
At the beginning of the pandemic, Amazon offered up to two weeks of paid
time off for employees who had Covid-19 or needed to quarantine, and now,
they’ve reduced that to five *unpaid* excused days from work.
This drastic change is yet another reminder that the United States is an
outlier in the world when it comes to having a minimum paid leave law in
place.
Access to paid leave, in the midst of a pandemic and when the pandemic is
over, shouldn’t come down to winning the boss lottery or being lucky
enough to live in one of the 11 states plus Washington, DC that has passed
a paid family and medical leave law. We need a national paid family and
medical leave law and we need it now.
[1]Sign Now and urge Congress to pass family-centered policies like paid
family and medical leave to help lower costs for families.
Two years into the global pandemic and our nation’s economy is on the road
to recovery and there have been strides to help working families get back
on their feet. The economy has created 7.9 million jobs and the
unemployment rates are at their lowest levels in 54 years [ [link removed] ][ [link removed] ] and
holding steady at 3.6 percent [ [link removed] ] yet despite these important gains, we
still have plenty of work to do to support families across the nation.
Americans are still trying in earnest to make ends meet and as inflation
rates soar, it's clear that we are in desperate need of policy solutions
that will significantly lower costs for families, solutions like those
included in President Biden’s National Covid Preparedness Plan that calls
on Congress to provide paid sick leave to workers who need to miss work
due to a case of Covid-19 or to care for a loved one who has Covid-19. [ [link removed] ]
Moms and families continue to go to work, attend classes, send their
children to school and fulfill their caregiving responsibilities all while
facing the possibility of Covid-19 infections. And if you’re lucky enough
to be employed by a company that provides paid family and medical leave
and paid sick days, then you’re ahead of the game because this isn't the
case for many working people in the United States; 26 million workers
currently lack access to paid sick days and that includes 70 percent of
the lowest wage workers. These workers are in jobs that often require
frequent contact with the public, jobs in food preparation, home care and
child care and in customer service positions. [ [link removed] ]
[2]Sign Now and urge Congress to pass family-centered policies like paid
family and medical leave to help lower costs for families.
Paid leave isn’t a vacation, by any stretch, paid leave is a necessity and
it’s critical for working families who are struggling to make ends meet
and fulfill their caregiving responsibilities. Not only does paid leave
benefit employees by allowing them time to take off to recover from
childbirth, bond with a new child, provide care for themselves or a loved
one when a serious health issue arises or to recover from Covid, but paid
leave boosts employee morale and keeps employees and especially women
whose labor force participation has decreased dramatically in part due to
caregiving responsibilities, attached to the workforce.
Our nation lacks family-centered policies like paid family and medical
leave, and women, who bear the brunt of providing care have been
disproportionately affected. It doesn’t have to be this way. We can do
better. As we continue on the path to economic recovery for communities
that have been hard hit, we must also encourage our champions in Congress
to push and pass policies that support women and women of color. Women are
still far behind men in terms of economic recovery, 181,000 women left the
workforce in April alone and there are nearly one million fewer women
working or seeking a new job than in February 2022. [ [link removed] ] We need
comprehensive paid family and medical leave so women and working families
don’t have to choose between putting food on the table and taking care of
loved ones in times of need.
Providing paid leave to employees is the right thing to do. It’s also the
smart thing to do for businesses. In fact, did you know that paid family
and medical leave is also overwhelmingly supported by small business
owners? Small business owners are in favor of passing a paid leave policy
because they would no longer need to carry the cost alone when an employee
needs to go on paid leave. In addition, paid leave helps to reduce
recruitment and retraining costs. [ [link removed] ]
I don’t have to sell it to you, but you can’t disagree with the data! Paid
leave is an investment in our workforce, our families, our businesses and
our economic growth. This is a cost saving measure and one that families
will benefit from right now.
[3]Sign Now and urge Congress to pass family-centered policies like paid
family and medical leave to help lower costs for families.
Let’s once again, use our collective voices and urge Congress to act now
and pass much needed relief like paid family and medical leave, that helps
lower costs for families.
Thanks for your support,
- Namatie, Ruth, Kristin, and the whole MomsRising.org/MamásConPoder Team
P.S.– Personal experiences are powerful and can make a HUGE difference in
helping elected leaders understand how public policies impact families so
they can move change. We want to hear more from YOU! Can you take a second
and follow the link below to share your personal story about how having,
or NOT having, access to job-protected paid leave or affordable, quality
child care has impacted your family in the pandemic?
[4][link removed]
References:
[1] [5]Amazon workers won’t get paid for Covid leave anymore
[2] [6]Remarks by President Biden on the March Jobs Report
[3] [7]Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims
[4] [8]Employment Situation Summary
[5] [ [link removed] ]National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan
[6] [ [link removed] ]National Compensation Survey: Employee Benefits in the United
States, March 2021
[7] [ [link removed] ]More than half of April’s job gains went to women - but 1 million
women are still missing from the labor force
[8] [ [link removed] ]The Economic Benefits of Paid Leave: Fact Sheet
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