Companies are pushing for paid family and medical leave at the federal level.
On Monday, more than 70 businesses across the country closed their doors in solidarity and demanding paid family and medical leave from the federal government.
The day of action coincided with Women's History Month and emphasized the value of investing in women in the workforce.
“This is an action designed to demonstrate the value of women's low- and unpaid care and work, and to demonstrate the value of women's low- and unpaid care and work, and if the United States' lack of paid leave under federal law means more women will be forced out of the workforce.” The idea is to symbolically show what would happen if people were to take action,'' said Dawn Huckelbridge, founding director of Paid Leave for All, the campaign behind the day of action.
Currently, there is no federal law in the United States that requires employers to provide paid leave. As of 2023, only 27% of private sector, state and local employees had access to paid family leave benefits, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) entitles some employees to up to 12 weeks of unpaid family and medical leave within a 12-month period. According to the BLS, 90% of civilian employees had access to unpaid family leave in 2023.
Universal paid leave was proposed at the federal level in 2021 as the Build Back Better Act, which passed in the House but died in the Senate.
The Pay Leave For All campaign calls for federal paid leave for all employees, while promoting family and medical leave to specifically support mothers and parents.
Janelle Theves, chief commercial officer at childcare solutions company Bugaboo, was among the companies taking part in Monday's day of action. It was her own experience as a new mother working for her company that became the source of her passion for wanting to create a supportive environment for parents at her workplace. , he said.
“My bigger hope is that all parents have that financial security and the ability to actually have time off as they start raising children,” Taves said. “At a deeper level, my goal is that this allows more women to stay in the workforce and believe that raising children and being a mother doesn't have to be a sacrifice to your career. ”
Huckelbridge said there are still disparities in access and utilization of paid family and medical leave for women of color. He said federal paid leave could help solve those problems.
According to a 2011 BLS study, Hispanic workers and non-Hispanic black workers are less likely than non-Hispanic white workers to have paid parental leave, with 35.7% of Hispanic workers , 42.5% of non-Hispanic black workers have paid parental leave. Paid parental leave was taken by 44.7% of non-Hispanic white workers.
“Our economy has always been powered by women, especially women of color, and it is women and women of color who continue to be undervalued and underpaid. A big part is the lack of paid leave.The burden of caregiving once again falls disproportionately on women and on women of color,” Huckelbridge said.
Participants at Monday's day of action emphasized the importance of investing in employees through paid time off, but also noted that not all companies can invest on their own.
Dr. Manju Dawkins, founder and CEO of Thimble Health, a healthcare company focused on solutions to reduce fear of needles and pain, spoke about the challenges she faces as a small business owner.
“One of the most important things to realize about this movement is that it's not about putting the burden on businesses,” Dawkins said. “As a small business owner, I'm very sensitive to that as well. It's really hard to keep a business afloat. So this is something that the federal government should really support, because it's good for the country. ”
