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Paid Sick Days

Marvin, Tammi, Misha and Daddy

June 12, 2013
When my wife and I adopted Misha Gabrielle, our oldest daughter was a two-week old infant in the late summer of 1998, the last thing we had thought about was my paternity leave. My wife was working at a relatively progressive college, and she was able to take eight weeks off before returning to...
Mark Anthony Neal's picture

It Takes Time

June 12, 2013
I woke up with a startle. It was 1:30 AM and my wife was telling me we needed to go. It was time to have the baby. Luckily, our “nesting phase” had kicked in the previous weekend so we were already packed in anticipation of the big day. Luggage full of extra clothes, baby outfits, books, snacks,...
Brady Bogenreif's picture

Odd Man Out. Why isn’t anyone else taking paternity leave?

June 12, 2013
Something strange happens when I wear the baby. I slip into a black carrier, strap the baby in, make sure she’s snug, put a hat over her tiny head, then head out. A woman with a baby on her hip? So common most people wouldn’t notice. But a man, by himself, with a baby on his chest, bobbing and...
Matt Pusateri's picture

Moms "Push" Florida Gov. Rick Scott to veto a bill that hurts families.

June 11, 2013
Earlier this year the Florida legislature passed a bill that prevents local governments from writing and passing earned sick time laws and voters from petitioning to put earned sick time initiatives on the ballot such as the pending referendum in Orange County. MomsRising is proud to work with...
Ruth Martin's picture

Working Moms Just Blamed (Again)!?

June 6, 2013
Deep breath. Count to 10. Can't. Believe. He. Really. Said. That. Yesterday at a Washington Post event , Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant (R) said that America is so "mediocre" in educational outcomes because "mom is in the workplace." ... oh REALLY?! There is steam coming out of the ears of moms...
Kristin's picture

Breastfeeding IS a Civil Right!

June 1, 2013
Being a new mother is not easy and getting breastfeeding off to a good start is a small – no, make that a HUGE miracle! Add the stress of losing your job because you tried to give your baby the best start in life? I can’t even imagine it. Breastfeeding became a protected Civil Right in California...
Genevieve Colvin's picture

Why Most Women Can’t “Lean In” Without Stronger Laws

May 14, 2013
Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s chief operating officer, has kicked up all sorts of controversy with her argument that career women can be their own worst enemy and should “lean in” more to their jobs and their ambitions. But the biggest, largely unspoken problem is not that she is elitist, or placing...
Dina Bakst's picture

Why I Believe in Paid Sick Leave

April 25, 2013
Moms shouldn’t have to choose between their jobs and the health of their families. But too often, companies that are fixated on their bottom lines force women to make this choice. I know. It happened to me. I became pregnant with my second child while I was working at a T-Mobile call center in...
Kristi Rifkin's picture

Paid Sick Days: A Matter of Life and Death

April 25, 2013
I have paid sick days but, sadly, know firsthand that we’re all at risk if we don’t ensure that everyone has this basic benefit. My mother, a Holocaust survivor, developed Parkinson’s disease and had a major stroke. She was hospitalized and then sent to a nursing home. The doctors told my father...
Cindy Weasen's picture

Brotherly Love? Check. Sisterly Devotion? Check. Earned Sick Days? Not So Fast.

April 24, 2013
It’s the stories that I keep coming back to. The story of a cook who was hit by a bus and hit with an eviction notice when he couldn’t pay his rent. The story of a mother who missed two weeks of work with illness and, five months later, still wasn’t back on her feet financially. The story of a man...
Marianne Bellesorte's picture

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