workplace issues

Breastfeeding Mom Denied!

Anita — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 23:38:33 -0400

Doctors agree that breastmilk is best for infants, but their own licensing board isn't following doctor's orders. Sophie Currier recently learned that when it comes to supporting breastfeeding, many of our leaders--whether they are in the medical establishment (as in Sophie's case), business sector, or elsewhere--still don't "walk the talk." You see, Sophie was denied breast pumping breaks during her nine hour medical licensing exam. She's not alone. Even in this day and age when the medical evidence is clear that breastfeeding is best for infants, women are regularly denied the time and location to pump.

"Opting Out" discussion reaches the tipping point

Mojo Mom -- Amy Tiemann — Thu, 24 May 2007 13:45:30 -0400

A number of new books have revived the conversation about the "opt-out" phenomenon of women leaving the workforce to focus on family caregiving, and their efforts to build "on-ramps" back to work.

I appeared on The Today Show right before Mother's Day to discuss this issue, which has been relevant to my work as Mojo Mom. It was a challenge to get my message out on a large panel that included New York Times reporter Lisa Belkin, The Feminine Mistake author Leslie Bennetts, and psychologist Gail Saltz. I am proud to report that I accomplished my major goal of endorsing MomsRising.org on air.

Watch the video

I acknowledge that "Opting out" is a controversial topic, for good reason. Even among married mothers of preschoolers, the group we'd peg as prime "opt out" candidates, 70% are in the workforce. It has been argued that the minority of privileged women who take "off-ramps" receive a disproportionate share of the media spotlight. MomsRising is aware of this dynamic and is consciously striving to make our Open, Flexible Work platform widely applicable to all mothers.

The quality of the opt-out discussion has been elevated by several recent books and articles that I'd like to recommend. [more]

Obituary

Kiki — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 17:55:04 -0500

At the end of November 2006, the hopes and dreams of women, especially mothers, to obtain a job with dignity and respect in Pennsylvania, died on the steps of the state capitol in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania as a result of complete, deliberate and intentional neglect by the committee chairmen of the Senate Labor and Industry Committee and the House Judiciary Committee who held the fate of SB440 and HB352 in their hands.