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John,
Fighting for gender justice can be ruff, so as we approach the tail end of the year, we figured: why not just send an email about dogs? Sure, we’ll talk about the pawtriarchy some, but we’ll really be spending most of this email highlighting NWLC staffers’ dogs with some puns along the way. Just the way we like it.
REMINDER: Attacks on unions are attacks on women.
Phoebe says: "Two paws up for collective bark-aining!"
All of the Democratic candidates for president have said they wouldn’t cross the picket line at tonight’s Democratic debate, hosted by Loyola Marymount University (LMU). The campus’ food service workers, who are contracted by Sodexo, were locked in a negotiations battle with Sodexo since March. The workers have since reached a tentative agreement, meaning the debate will move forward, but it’s never a bad time to point out that unions are a really pawsitive force for women and their families (like, tail-waggingly good). Research shows that women in unions are more likely to have health insurance benefits and a pension, face a smaller wage gap, and are paid more on average than their non-union peers.
- Read more: This summer we organized a letter from the women’s community to Congress on the need to pass federal legislation extending the right to collective bargaining for all public service workers, a majority of whom are women. Public service workers deserve better than the current patchwork of inconsistent state laws (and, in some states, are denied the right to unionize altogether).
PUPDATE: Child. Care. For. All.
Sherlock’s question: “Does ‘child care for all’ include puppies? Asking for a friend.”
I don’t have any children, but I still care a lot about child care. Before anyone says I’m barking up the wrong tree, let me explain: science tells us that children’s brains develop the most between zero and three. That means that it’s super important that children have access to high-quality early learning in their earliest years, and I don’t know about you, but I want the people in my community to have access to that kind of critical early learning. It also matters to me that the 1 million plus child care workers in the United States (the majority of who are women) have jobs with good pay and good benefits. And, of course, child care affects the economy — without child care, parents have a harder time finding and keeping a job, getting an education, or training for a new career.
There are a lot of objective reasons to care about child care — but I also just care about how other people are doing, regardless of how it affects my life. I’ve heard from too many friends about how hard it is to find high-quality child care and how paying for it creates a financial burden so large that it’s a huge source of stress and strain in their lives. That’s why, this week, we took part in a day of action to support the Child Care for Working Families Act, which would put high-quality, affordable child care within reach for many more families and support child care workers. It’s not too late to join us in taking action!
Must-(Love)-Do(g)s:
Must-Paw-Throughs:
Your Feminist Moment of Joy
Thought we were out of NWLC dogs to feature? Doggone wrong! All of these pups — starting at the top with Dexter, Max, Smudge, and Theo — are our source of joy this week.
Since this is our last newsletter of the year, I wanted to take a quick second to say: thanks for letting us hound your inboxes this year with information and for your dogged determination in the movement for gender justice. We can’t wait to continue building a better world for women and their families (and their dogs) next year with you.
That’s all fur now,
Hannah Finnie
Senior Manager of Campaign and Digital Strategies
National Women’s Law Center
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