The Year in Review: Our Impact in 2019
As the year comes to a close, we have many victories to celebrate! In just 2019, our work has had a major impact on millions of women, caregivers, and families.
4 Policies We Need to Support Family Caregivers
When workers must forego wages to attend to family caregiving responsibilities or otherwise struggle with juggling caregiving and work, it can result in lasting economic consequences. So this National Family Caregivers Month, let’s demand we support family caregivers and treat their role with the value it deserves!
To Support Survivors of Domestic or Sexual Violence, We Need Paid Safe Leave Laws
Fortunately, a growing number of jurisdictions are recognizing the need for paid safe leave, to ensure workers don’t have to make the impossible choice between their physical safety and their economic security. In 11 states, 16 cities, and 3 countries, paid sick time laws contain “safe time” provisions to protect workers when they or their family members are victims of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual assault.
It’s National Work and Family Month, But Work-Life Balance Remains Elusive for Low Wage Workers
According to recent data, the gap between the richest and poorest U.S. households is the largest it's been in 50 years. This means that low income workers across the country are being left behind despite economic growth, too often struggling to make ends meet with a scarcity of time to care for themselves and their families. So this National Work and Family Month, let’s demand justice and work-life balance for low income families
4 Policies To Advance Working Women’s Health & Well-Being
Policies that support working women and families are often not only a matter of economic justice, but also an urgent matter of public health. On National Women’s Health Day, here are four federal policies we must pass to ensure the health of working women and their families.
In Arizona, A Victory in the Courts for Paid Sick Time and Local Democracy
After drawn out litigation, the Arizona Court of Appeals ruled earlier this year that the State’s attempts to pass legislation that prohibits cities from passing laws regarding benefits—including paid leave—violates Arizona’s paid sick and safe days ballot initiative and the Arizona Voter Protection Act. The Arizona Supreme Court has now settled the issue by refusing to interfere with the Court of Appeals decision. As a result, local governments in Arizona can pass paid leave and other benefits laws that build on all rights at the state level.
Back to School: Supporting Kids Means Supporting Working Parents!
Parents with school-aged children quickly learn to expect the unexpected. Yet too many working parents find themselves in impossible dilemmas when a child falls ill, or when school-related meetings and events arise, due to a lack of paid time off and inflexibility in their schedules. That’s why we’re fighting for policy solutions that ensure parents can be there for their children when they need to without risking their economic security.
To Advance Labor Rights, We Must Defend Local Democracy in the Courts
Cities have long been at the frontlines in the fight to reform the modern workplace: local communities have led the way in adopting workplace solutions like paid sick time, living wage mandates, fair scheduling requirements, and LGBTQ-inclusive nondiscrimination policies. But in response, states are increasingly blocking, or “preempting,” local progress by stepping in and overturning progressive local laws or preventing cities from passing them in the first place.
Update from the Courts: Victory for Paid Sick Leave in Pittsburgh!
Earlier this week, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court handed down a long-awaited decision upholding Pittsburgh’s paid sick time ordinance. The City of Pittsburgh, with assistance from A Better Balance and many other community organizations, passed the ordinance nearly four years ago to the day—on August 3, 2015—but its implementation had been on hold while a lawsuit against the law made its way through the court system.
We Call On Congress to Pass The National Domestic Workers Bill of Rights
The nation’s 2.5 million domestic workers are excluded from the vast majority of federal and state laws granting basic workplace rights and protections, and there is little means of enforcing the protections they do have. This needs to change. We’re proud to support the National Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, which would ensure that domestic workers—including nannies, house cleaners, and home care workers—have the same fundamental rights as everyone else and are not left vulnerable to exploitation.