Washington Policy Watch

News and perspective on public policy issues affecting Washington's economy and quality of life, brought to you by the Economic Opportunity Institute.

February 3, 2012 • 8:48 am 1

Research shows paid family leave not only better for families and workers – it’s better for business too

Several states have adopted paid family leave policies as an important protection for the economic security of working families. After New Jersey implemented its own statewide policy in 2009, researchers from Rutgers decided to investigate how workers benefited from the change. They found paid leave is not only good for families, it’s better for businesses and leads to reduced use of public assistance:

  • Women who take paid leave are more likely to be working one year after a child’s birth than those who do not take leave. This means that employers who invest in their workers ultimately benefit from reduced turnover. Recruiting and hiring new employees is far more costly than keeping the ones you already have.
  • Both women and men who take paid leave are significantly less likely to utilize public assistance programs than those who do not take leave. Food stamps and other public assistance programs are necessary to protect the most economically vulnerable. But it makes sense to invest in programs that prevent poverty, too. Putting systems in place to best support our workforce ultimately reduces the extraordinary fiscal and social costs of poverty – something that benefits all members of our communities.

As more women have entered the workforce and the population has aged, increased numbers of workers have found themselves in situations that require an extended absence from work – whether to care for a new baby, an aging parent or a sick spouse.

The 1993 federal Family Medical Leave Act, ensured up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for workers to bond with a new child or care for sick family member. This legislation set an important workplace standard, but its reach is limited — extending only to companies with more than 50 employees and putting restrictions on which workers are able to access the benefit. And, of course, the leave is unpaid. While time to bond with a child or care for a family member is critical, the loss of income over an extended period of time is often impossible for families to manage.

To address the inadequacies of the federal policy, several states have crafted more extensive and inclusive policies to better meet the needs of working families. Currently, two states – California and New Jersey – have policies in place that offer family leave insurance as a component of their temporary disability insurance programs. Both offer up to six weeks of paid leave.

Washington, too, established a Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program in 2007 to provide workers with up to 5 weeks of paid leave. However, the program has not been funded, and implementation has been pushed to 2015. In the meantime, advocates from the Washington Family Leave Coalition have been working to improve the legislation (including an increase to 6 weeks of paid leave) and update the funding mechanism.

Until Washington and other states can establish good policies to address the needs of working families, many will continue to struggle for economic security. Paid family leave is an important workplace benefit that ultimately extends far beyond workers – promoting healthy business, families and communities.

Filed under: paid family leave, work and family, , , , ,

January 30, 2012 • 12:28 pm 0

Small business owners shun lobbyists, call for “high-road” workplace standards

Jamie Vaughn, owner of Revival Lighting in Spokane

Business experience, academic research and political muscle are backing calls by small business owners for “high road” business and economic development policies – and policymakers are listening.

The recent campaign for paid sick days in Seattle featured local business leaders like Dave Meinert, Makini Howell and Jody Hall. And they didn’t just support the idea – they helped craft the proposal that eventually became law. As Howell put it in an open letter to business owners:

“Not only can paid sick days work for my business, I believe it is exactly the type of public policy that makes our community stronger. Ultimately, strong businesses need strong communities to thrive.”

Before you write that off as the “Seattle liberal establishment” at work, take a look at this article from the Spokane Inlander about Revival Lighting owner Janine Vaughn, who:

showed up as a simple small business owner in Inlander stories about income-tax Initiative 1098 (arguing it would save her small business money) and workers-comp insurance-privatization Initiative 1082 (arguing it would cost her small business money).

Vaughn is a member of the small business lobbying group Main Street Alliance, which initially formed to support the small-business friendly aspects of proposed national health care reform legislation.

The Main Street Alliance, Vaughn explains, is made up of mostly smaller businesses. That’s why they tend to stand in such stark contrast to traditional business lobbying groups – and the Republican agenda.

That kind of contrast gets noticed. The White House has been in touch to get the Alliance’s views on public policy issues that affect small businesses and their employees:

“It’s actually very surprising,” Vaughn says about her sudden ubiquity in the press. “They’re actually listening to the small business voice. It’s exciting.”

Academic research backs up these business owners’ experience with “high road” economic development policies like a strong minimum wage, paid sick days, and paid family leave.

  • The latest research by economists comparing counties that share borders across state lines has found that increasing the minimum wage not only increases the incomes of low wage workers, it does so without decreasing the number of jobs. And it benefits employers by decreasing costly turnover.
  • Since New Jersey’s paid family leave policy was implemented in 2009, and researchers at Rutgers have found paid leave is not only good for families, it’s better for businesses and leads to reduced use of public assistance.
  • A study in the American Journal of Public Health demonstrates how a lack of workplace policies such as paid sick leave contributes significantly to illness among Hispanics — and thus the general population.

This is a welcome and exciting trend – one that bodes well for Washington’s (and America’s) businesses, families and communities as we strive to restore the promise of the middle class and build an economy that works for everyone in the years to come.

Filed under: minimum wage, paid family leave, paid sick days, state economy, work and family, , , , , , , ,

November 17, 2011 • 10:26 am 1

You can’t win in America’s casino economy – unless you change the rules

A casino can be an entertaining way to pass the time, provided you know two things: 1) you’re probably going to lose; and 2) if you win, it’s not because of skill – its luck. But even “no-limit” poker is small stakes compared to what we all play for in life. That’s why some things shouldn’t be a gamble.

The quality of a child’s pre-school shouldn’t depend on their parent’s disposable income; every child deserves the opportunity to get a strong start in life. To accomplish that, day care has to be not only affordable for parents, but the people working there need the opportunity for professional development and compensation to ensure well-trained and experienced professionals are caring for the next generation.

Luck shouldn’t determine whether you can afford the college degree or other training you need to move up. Diligence, hard work and applied talent should have a lot more to do with it. That’s one of the reasons we need statewide tax reform: to improve funding for higher education, so our state’s colleges and universities become affordable again for a middle-class family.

You shouldn’t have to fear losing your job because you or someone in your family got unlucky with the flu – or because you are lucky enough to welcome a new child into your family. We need strong workplace standards like paid sick days and family leave insurance so everyone can take responsibility for their health, their family and their job.

And after a lifetime of hard work supporting yourself and/or your loved ones, there’s no reason you should have to gamble on the chance to retire with dignity and a measure of economic security intact. That’s why it’s important we not only maintain Social Security benefits, but expand them.

It boils down to this: To have a real shot at the American Dream, people need to get their cards from a straight shuffle, not a crooked deal. Making a living, keeping your family healthy, and being able to get ahead should have more to do with the content of your character and your willingness to work hard, than where and when you’re born.

Occupy Wall Street and We Are The 99% exist because the rules of our economy are rigged to grant extraordinary favor to the few at the expense of the rest. It’s no surprise that people are rejecting the stagnant wages, sky-high costs for childcare and college, underwater mortgages and dwindling nest eggs they’ve been dealt. Now we’ve got to rewrite our public policies to keep the dealers honest and ensure everyone gets a straight shuffle.

Filed under: early learning, education, minimum wage, retirement security, state economy, tax and budget, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

August 1, 2011 • 8:02 am 2

Balancing work and family responsibilities requires new workplace policies

A new report from the AARP puts a price tag on an invaluable service typically provided by adult children – the cost of family caregiving.

The report Valuing the Invaluable: 2011 Update – The Growing Contributions and Costs of Family Caregiving finds that in 2009, more than 42 million Americans provided uncompensated care to an adult with limitations. The estimated economic value of those unpaid contributions?: $450 billion in 2009, up from $375 billion in 2007.

With families and workplaces evolving, many people cannot afford to stay home to provide unpaid care for an elderly parent – and hiring a caregiver is often cost prohibitive. Take the story of Take Cymando Henley, 36, whose mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when he was starting college (from NPR):

Every day, Henley must help his mom in and out of bed and onto the toilet. He even rolls her over in the middle of the night if she becomes uncomfortable. Care like this from a professional can cost tens of thousands of dollars a year. But Henley does it for free, and it’s on top of his full-time job… “Cymando’s care for me was about 40 hours a week,” [his mother] says.

Many adult children would prefer to provide some level of care for their elderly parents, but middle class wages have remained nearly stagnant for decades, and households often need more than one breadwinner to stay afloat. Added to that, workplace policies and benefits are largely stuck in 1950s assumptions about family situations – where the father went to work and the mother stayed home to take care of the children.

Today, stagnant wages and the squeeze on the middle class have made single-earner families the exception – not the rule. That makes it impossible for many workers who are also caregivers or parents to fulfill their work and family responsibilities.

The report outlines several policy changes that could be adopted at a small fraction of the value of unpaid caregivers’ contributions:

  • Workplaces should adopt more ‘family-friendly’ practices, such as allowing telecommunting and flextime,
  • Policymakers should adopt/improve state Family Leave Insurance and the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act,
  • Social Security benefits for family caregivers should be protected and expanded, and
  • Minimum standards to ensure employers provide paid sick days for workers to care for themselves or a loved one.

These types of advances in workplace policies would allow workers to strike a better balance between their commitments at home and work – keeping families healthier, happier and more productive.

Read the full report from AARP here »

Filed under: paid family leave, paid sick days, work and family, , , , ,

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