States that have enacted abortion restrictions or bans also have “systemic” barriers in place that impede “support the health and economic security of pregnant and birthing people and their families,” according to a new report from the nonpartisan and nonprofit National Partnership for Women & Families first shared with Axios.
“According to the National Partnership for Women and Families, paid sick days help to reduce the loss of productivity that results when employees try to do their jobs while ill.”
“And in some states, like Louisiana, the disparity is even more significant. Data from the National Partnership for Women & Families indicates Black women in Louisiana only earn 48 cents on the dollar compared to their white male counterparts.”
“What we have seen for years is that lack of access to abortion or restrictions around abortion also occur in states that have some of the fewest supports,” says Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families.
“The folks pushing the harshest restrictions around reproductive rights are also the ones who don’t support the child tax credit or the child care expansion or paid family leave,” she says.
“And if you get out of the work-family policies, they are also the ones pushing voting rights restrictions,” Frye adds. “What it says to me is that this is really not about supporting women or families. It is not about women’s health. It is about a different type of agenda that mostly involves controlling women and controlling women’s bodies and furthering a particular ideology and viewpoint. And that is contrary to the rhetoric around supporting women and families.”
Shaina Goodman, director of reproductive health and rights at the National Partnership for Women & Families, a non-partisan abortion rights advocacy group, said “real people are suffering as a result” of the to-be-determined status of abortion in states like Michigan. She said restrictions may push people to pursue unofficial abortions that wouldn’t be reported to the state.
“Often, policies differ based on state laws or employer-based insurance coverage, but according to the non-profit National Partnership for Women and Families, just 19 percent of workers in the U.S. have access to paid family leave through their employers. A survey conducted by the NPWF found that 84 percent of U.S. voters support a national paid family and medical leave policy that covers all working people to care for a new child; a seriously ill, injured or disabled loved one; or their own health issue.”
“Lelaine Bigelow, the vice president for social impact and congressional relationships for the National Partnership for Women and Families, also listened to the focus groups and said it stuck out to her that women really want to hear from politicians on this issue.”
“The National Partnership for Women & Families estimates that approximately 870,900 reproductive-age women in Georgia are economically insecure, which means that they live in a family below 200 percent of the federal poverty line.”
“Enhancing the quality of pay data is an essential step to ensuring all workers’ rights, but is particularly necessary because women and workers from communities of color continue to face significant pay disparities,” said Jocelyn C. Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families.
“The work of women of color, in particular, has been persistently devalued for decades. For example, National Partnership research shows that Latinas make just 49 cents for every dollar white, non-Hispanic men are paid — the equivalent of two years of rent.”
According to a fact sheet produced by the National Partnership for Women & Families, if this gap were to be eliminated it would mean that the average income for Black women would increase by $23,074 annually. That’s money that could cover rising costs of healthcare, housing, food, and childcare.
“An analysis by the National Partnership for Women & Families found that nearly 400,000 female veterans of reproductive age live in states likely or certain to ban abortion.”
Statement of Jocelyn C. Frye, President, National Partnership for Women & Families
How women of color in Georgia will be affected by the state’s new abortion law, an interview with Shaina Goodman
The Childbirth Connection site is part of the National Partnership for Women & Families that has been helping women and families regarding maternity care for over 100 years. The Childbirth Connection site has a great section that answers questions in preparation for your cesarean section and options for delivery after your cesarean section.
“An analysis by the National Partnership for Women and Families found that abortion bans in the 26 states that are certain or likely to ban abortion could affect up to 2.8 million women with disabilities (53 percent of all such women in the U.S.).”
Notably, according to the National Partnership for Women and Families’ May 2022 data sheet, the wage gap is often even larger for women of color. The organization’s findings show that while white women earn 73 cents for every dollar a white male earns, Latina women are paid just 49 cents, Black women earn 58 cents, Native American women earn 50 cents, and Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) women are paid 75 cents.
“When policymakers come and say, ‘Here’s what I’m doing,'” Ms. Frye said, women should shift the conversation to the issues that set them back, like jobs that don’t offer easily transferable retirement accounts or paid leave for caregiving.”
According to the Center for American Progress, the price of child care is just over $1,300 a month, about 21% of the average household income. Meanwhile, the U.S. has lost nearly 500,000 caregiver jobs since the start of the pandemic, according to the National Partnership for Women and Families. Jocelyn Frye, the group’s president, joined CBS News to discuss.
