‘They have taken away our vote’: Michigan approves minimum-wage hike and paid sick leave, setting up clash – Washington Post
“Paid sick leave, minimum-wage hikes, higher taxes on the rich for teachers — these are all overwhelmingly popular among both Democratic and Republican voters,” Saru Jayaraman, an academic at the University of California at Berkeley and co-founder of Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, which has pushed raising the wage for tipped workers. “Ballot measures are the greatest path to allow working people to move the issues they believe in, but they’re being subverted.”
Paid Family Leave Supporters Hit Campaign Trail – Bloomberg
“Family leave may not be seen a dominant issue in this election cycle but it certainly is very salient to the substantial number of voters that struggle with providing care to family members,” said Chris Borick, a professor of political science at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pa.
Legislature passes wage hike, paid sick leave but it’s not that simple – Detroit Free Press
Danielle Atkinson, founder of Michigan Time to Care, which spearheaded the paid sick leave proposal, was grateful for the approval of the proposal, but said that her group will now spend its time making sure it’s not gutted after the election.
FAMILY Act is an investment in infants, toddlers and families – Des Moines Register
While preparing to welcome our second child, Karter, my family faced a difficult choice. I could keep my job, earning barely enough to get by and missing out on critical time to nurture my baby, or I could stay home with him, giving up my job to live in poverty.
How schools are failing working parents — and how some are helping – Washington Post
When it comes to schools providing care, the problem is largely one of funding, says Debra Ness, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families. The federal government, she says, should do more to help. A cohesive federal policy to fund after-school care, rather than what she calls today’s “patchwork” of programs, would “ease the burden on local school districts.”
25% of Women Have Turned Down a Job Because of the Benefits Package. Here’s How Employers Can Fix That. – Medium
[M]any employers aren’t making it easy for [women] with their limited family leave policies, rigid cultures and business models that, in practice, often really don’t support working parents.
Does Your Company Offer Paid Sick Leave? Here’s Why It Should – The Journal Times
The problem with policies that don’t distinguish between leisure time and sick time, however, is that workers often will go to great lengths to avoid taking off for the latter. As such, many have a tendency to come to work sick, which pretty much benefits no one.
Pushing for paid sick leave in the workplace – Spectrum News
The county legislature is considering a bill to require all employers provide some sick time, even for part-time workers – although the smallest businesses would be able to make it unpaid. [Includes video.]
Teachers donating sick days is a symptom of a wretched system – CNN
Donating sick and vacation days may seem like a thoughtful way to have a colleague’s back, but it’s also a spotlight on a gaping need to fix an utterly broken system.
Why Paid Sick Leave Is Important for Your Financial (and Physical) Health – U.S. News & World Report
Employees without paid sick benefits – of which there are 34.2 million in the private sector – are three times more likely to have family incomes below the poverty line, according to research from Florida Atlantic University and Cleveland State University published in Social Work in Health Care.
