Sloan Policy Brief Examines Paid Family Leave

The Sloan Work and Family Research Network has published a new policy brief that examines paid family leave. The policy brief, “Paid Family Leave: One Solution to Helping Today’s Working Families Meet Their Family Responsibilities at Critical Times,” describes state policy efforts to address paid family leave.

According to the Sloan Work and Family Research Network, the brief also looks at why paid family leave policy is being introduced, why federal legislation — the Family and Medical Leave Act — is insufficient for many, and how paid family leave affects working families, employers and government.

Work-Life and Dads

The current recession has placed increasing stress on working families as businesses strive to do more with less (heavier workloads, longer hours). An article on CNN.com summarizes a CareerBuilder Survey, Working Dads, which asked 797 men who are employed full-time and have children 18 and younger living at home, about their current work/life balance. Most fathers surveyed agreed that they are hesitant to give up their income in the current economy but are increasingly interested in exploring alternate pathways that allow them to spend more quality time with their families.

Work/life balance has always been a struggle for fathers and continues to be even more of an issue. With the advanced technology of cell phones, it is nearly impossible to separate work from home life. Thirty percent of surveyed fathers admitted that they would take a pay cut if they were given the opportunity to spend more time at home with their children. Some other interesting statistics from the article that illustrate the struggle of working parents:

-Thirty-nine percent of surveyed dads spend two hours or less per workday with their children, and 14 percent spend an hour or less.

-Half of working fathers admit to missing a significant event in their children’s lives in the last year due to work; 28 percent missed more than three.

These statistics illustrate the need for companies to offer alternatives that provide their employees with greater balance between their home and work. Providing employees with greater work/life balance leads to more productive and happier employees creating a benefit for both the employer and worker. For more information on workplace flexibility visit www.cvworkingfamilies.org.

By Kaitlin Herbert

President Obama Visits Corporate Voices Nonprofit Partner Year Up

At our Corporate Voices for Working Families annual meeting we honored Year Up as our Nonprofit Partner of the Year, recognizing that organization for being the premiere alternative pathway program that successfully prepares low income young adults for professional careers.

Today, with the national spotlight on mentors and parents, President Barack Obama visited the Year Up offices in Washington, visiting with staff members and talking to students. Here’s the story from Year Up:

President Barack Obama visited with students at Year Up today to celebrate responsible fathers and the contributions they make to our country.  A model of social innovation, Year Up is a one year program that serves low-income men and women, ages 18 to 24, using a pioneering approach that provides professional and technical skills training, college credits, mentoring, social support and an apprenticeship with a corporate partner.  With a national network of 6 sites in Atlanta, Boston, New York, Providence, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., Year Up is meeting its mission to close the opportunity divide.

The President talked with students about the challenges facing young adults today, and how critical Year Up has been for them as they strive to effectively find a pathway to a livable wage career and post secondary education, while still being able to take responsibility for their families.

“The President really seems to understand the things that young fathers have to do to take care of their children and he wants us to have the opportunities to provide for our families,” said Juan Carlos Artero, a Year Up alumnus and current staff member, who will speak at the White House later this afternoon.

Several students guided the President on a tour of Year Up’s Washington, D.C., site. They demonstrated their skills in business communications and their proficiency in computer hardware assembly.  The students were then joined by several of Year Up’s corporate and philanthropic partners including Bank of America, Carlyle Group, Freddie Mac, JP Morgan Chase, Microsoft, Perot Systems, State Street Bank and Venture Philanthropy Partners.

Year Up works as an alternative pathway for youth integrating workforce training, post-secondary education and work experience that meets the needs of low-income young adults and also helps employers by providing them with skilled entry-level talent.

“At Year Up we believe that with high expectations and high support every young adult can reach their potential and get onto a viable path to economic self-sufficiency.  We are greatly honored that the President visited with our students today and we look forward to working with the Administration to scale this successful model and bridge the needs of employers and young adults,” said Gerald Chertavian, Year Up’s Founder and CEO.

And with the President came substantial national news coverage, including this Associated Press story: “Obama tells men to be there for kids.” Here’s from the story:

President Barack Obama, who barely knew his own father, had personal advice Friday for young men who become dads: “Even if your father was not there, you can be there for your child.”

Two days before Father’s Day, Obama was spending the afternoon promoting the importance of mentors and engaged parents.

He spoke at Year Up, a nonprofit program that trains 18-to-24-year-olds from urban backgrounds for college or professional work. The students get training for high-tech professions but also learn personal skills, like how to communicate well and solve conflicts, to help them succeed in life.

At the site in Arlington, Va., just outside of Washington, Obama told roughly 50 young men and women that it is the role of their communities to help provide them with support and direction. He said he knows they are headed into a tough job market but can succeed if they are persistent.

Obama took a brief tour of the center before speaking. At one point he got a lesson on the components of a computer from two of the students. Surveying a table full of parts, Obama said: “It’s about time I figure out what’s going on.”

He implored the men in the group to be present for their own children.

President Barack Obama, who barely knew his own father, had personal advice Friday for young men who become dads: “Even if your father was not there, you can be there for your child.”

Two days before Father’s Day, Obama was spending the afternoon promoting the importance of mentors and engaged parents.

He spoke at Year Up, a nonprofit program that trains 18-to-24-year-olds from urban backgrounds for college or professional work. The students get training for high-tech professions but also learn personal skills, like how to communicate well and solve conflicts, to help them succeed in life.

At the site in Arlington, Va., just outside of Washington, Obama told roughly 50 young men and women that it is the role of their communities to help provide them with support and direction. He said he knows they are headed into a tough job market but can succeed if they are persistent.

Obama took a brief tour of the center before speaking. At one point he got a lesson on the components of a computer from two of the students. Surveying a table full of parts, Obama said: “It’s about time I figure out what’s going on.”

He implored the men in the group to be present for their own children.

Allison Tomei, communications and government relations coordinator for Corporate Voices, helped to coordinate the communications and media relations for the President’s visit.

Identifying Critical Thinkers is Huge Payoff

An article published in Human Resource Executive Magazine highlights the most valued skill to have in the workplace as critical thinking. In today’s economy, success is reached through “making the right decisions, solving the problems that … impede success and anticipating the [upcoming] trends.” The Department of Labor identifies critical thinking as the fundamental factor to workplace competency despite its weak presence in new potential employees.

The article points to Are They Really Ready to Work?, a study conducted by Corporate Voices along with several other organizations, for comprehensive research regarding the skills of individuals entering the workforce.  One major finding of the study was that businesses see critical thinking as one of the most important skills needed to have success in one’s career. The study predicts that in the next five years, critical thinking will become an even more vital skill which needs to be mastered to achieve true success. The need for innovative thinkers has proposed many businesses and organizations to develop training programs which increase decision making, problem solving and strategic thinking. The article goes into detail as to what steps a company should take to train future employees for business.

By Kaitlin Herbert

Work-Sharing in a Down Economy

With the current state of the economy, businesses are searching for innovative approaches to survive the recession. A novel new program known as work-sharing, both cuts costs and prevents worker layoffs. This New York Times article describes the process and effects of work-sharing. Work-sharing operates by reducing employees’ weekly hours by around 20-40% and having states pay nearly half of the lost wages. This type of program benefits both the employer and worker because it prevents layoffs in a failing economy, allowing workers to keep their benefits and a large portion of their paycheck, while retaining employee talent and a skilled workforce.

When speaking of the new program, Andrew Nowakowsi, president of Tri-Star Industries, said “It’s a lot better than lay-offs. The alternative would have been to lay off three to seven workers, but that would mean that when things become busier, I’d run the risk of not having the trained people I need.”

Despite the large success of the program, only a small fraction of eligible companies are taking advantage of work-sharing. Government officials attribute the program’s lack of popularity due to under advertising by states causing many companies to be unaware of the program’s existence. States that already offer the program display an invested interest in work-sharing and hope it will spread to other states.

By Kaitlin Herbert

Working Mother Magazine 30th Anniversary

This month Working Mother Magazine celebrated its 30th anniversary of supporting issues of work-life balance for women. For the anniversary, the magazine surveyed readers, asking them to indicate positive changes that have occurred in the workplace within the last three decades. This article from The Post Standard reviews the findings from the survey and interviews Suzanne Riss, the editor-in-chief of Working Mother. The short survey revealed that despite the accomplishments made in regards to work-life balance, the largest challenge for working mothers is, overwhelmingly, stress. Suzanne Riss attributes the stress to the increased complications of womens’ lives rather than increased separation from their children. Riss also attributes the economy as a major contributor to women’s stress levels.

“If you look at economic trends right now, the recession is having a huge impact on women, not in the sense that they are losing their jobs, but that more men are losing their jobs than women. So, working moms are facing the additional pressure in a lot of cases of being the sole breadwinner.”

Riss notes that by the end of the year, women may outnumber men in the workforce, giving them power to dictate issues in the workplace. When asked by The Post Standard what she would like to see women achieve with this new freedom, Riss places salary equity and workplace flexibility as top priorities. Riss finishes the interview by imagining America’s workplace thirty years from now; she hopes to see America catch up with the rest of the world in regards to paid paternal leave as well as less gendered work roles for men (stay-at-home dads).

Corporate Voices for Working Families supports workplace flexibility because of its benefit to both employees and business. For more information on workplace flexibility please visit our website.

By Kaitlin Herbert

Lactation laws in U.S. territories

Following the successful release of our Workplace Lactation Toolkit, Corporate Voices for Working Families continues to search for thriving lactation policies in both the public and private sectors. The laws of several U.S. territories caught our attention.

Puerto Rico has enacted legislation to protect breastfeeding mothers at the workplace and in various public spaces. Mothers have the opportunity to breastfeed for half an hour during a full-time working day for up to one year. Shopping malls, airports, government buildings and other locations must have an area designed for breastfeeding and diaper changing that is not a bathroom. Breastfeeding mothers are exempt from jury duty. Puerto Rico has dedicated August as “Breastfeeding Awareness Month.”

The Virgin Islands have exempted breastfeeding from their public indecency laws. Mothers have the option to breastfeed in any public or private place.

A copy of the Workplace Lactation Toolkit can be found on our Corporate Voices website.

By Jennifer Weber