Vice President of Health Justice Sinsi Hernández-Cancio was a guest on Health Care Payment Learning & Action Network’s Spotlight on Action podcast to talk about moving the health care system towards one that effectively cares for every single person in this country – with dignity, excellence and respect.
“Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families said the passage of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act was a win for gender and racial equity.”
“The recent article focusing on priorities for the 2023 legislative session (“Reconsidering priorities,” Jan. 9) missed one critical opportunity: passing paid leave for New Mexico. No one should have to choose between a paycheck and taking care of their family. And research shows paid leave is good for businesses and the economy… “
Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families, said the passage of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act was a win for gender and racial equity. She added, “For far too long, pregnant workers have gone without the critical protections many people need to maintain a healthy pregnancy: protections like the ability to take bathroom breaks during a shift, sit down while working a cash register, or pause to take a drink of water to stay hydrated.”
“According to a new analysis from the National Partnership for Women & Families and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice, shared with NBC News, it was found that nearly 6.5 million Latinas or more than 4 in 10 of reproductive age (42% of all Latinas ages 15-49) live in 26 states that have banned or are likely to ban abortions after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade earlier this year.”
The National Partnership for Women & Families estimates that if just 10 percent of births moved from hospitals to birth centers, there would be $189 million of annual savings to the health care system.
“Women of color fare even worse. Black women make 64 cents for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men, according to the National Partnership for Women and Families.”
“According to the National Partnership for Women & Families, “only 25% of United States workers have paid family leave through their employers, and just 41% have access to personal medical leave through employer-provided short-term disability insurance.””
“The National Partnership for Women & Families has a guide that recommends ways employers can better support pregnant employees on the job. For example, extending accommodations to “all workers, regardless of part-time or temporary status,” not forcing workers to accept unnecessary accommodations, providing paid sick leave and family leave, not docking employees for tardy arrival, and eliminating ‘just-in-time’ scheduling, which gives employees very little notice of their shifts.”
“Access to paid leave helps our economy and helps keep people in the jobs they need so they can care for the families they love without jeopardizing their economic security. Yet 26 million workers currently lack access to paid sick days, as reported last month by the National Partnership for Women & Families. That includes 70 percent of the lowest wage workers, including many child care early educators.”
Statement of Jocelyn Frye, President, National Partnership for Women & Families
According to calculations from the National Partnership for Women and Families, between April 14 and Aug. 16 of 2021, just 13 percent of Arkansas parents and 14 percent of Mississippi parents were backstopped by paid sick leave when they had a child who was too sick to attend school or day care. A mere 18 percent of parents in Florida, Georgia, Michigan and Texas were able to take paid time off to care for their sick children. Workers in some industries don’t have paid sick days at all. Employees in the rail industry nearly went on strike to protest their employers’ practice of penalizing them for taking unpaid leave.
Latina employees are overrepresented in low-wage jobs, the National Partnership for Women & Families (NPWF) argued in March 2021, and face many other obstacles in the workforce.
Recommendations in “Partnership in Action” would help women return to work
“We have more pro-worker, pro-family, [Democratic] trifecta states now with the latest election,” Sharita Gruberg, vice president of economic justice at the National Partnership for Women and Families, said. “We will continue to see states not wait for the federal government.”
Statement of Jocelyn Frye, President, National Partnership for Women & Families
“Jocelyn Frye, the president of the National Partnership for Women and Families, who calls herself an “eternal optimist” about policy at the federal level, said she believes the conversation has moved forward in recent years. “The path is complicated, but the urgency is real” and “the support for the policies is real.” Going forward, she added, “the conversation will be less about whether there’s a value in paid leave, and increasingly a conversation about what paid leave should look like.”
“Advocates in the South say “abortion won” is not only untrue in their state, it misses the point. Abortion should be seen as a healthcare issue, not a political one, and access to healthcare shouldn’t sway by state or election year, Shaina Goodman, director for reproductive health and rights at the National Partnership for Women and Families, told me.”
“A study from the National Partnership for Women & Families revealed Latinas are the group most affected by state abortion restrictions in the aftermath of Dobbs v. Jackson. More than 4 in 10 (6.5 million) Latinas ages 15-49 live in states that have banned or likely will ban abortion.”
“In addition to their health benefits remaining intact, those employees are also guaranteed to keep their job for when they return. Nearly 15 million workers take FMLA leaves each year, according to the National Partnership for Women & Families.”
