September 9, 2008.
The Workplace Flexibility 2010 News Roundup is a compilation of the latest news articles, reports and other materials related to workplace flexibility. The News Roundup appears twice-weekly. If you have questions about any of the items, please contact WF2010@law.georgetown.edu.
Articles
What to Do When You're Out of Sick Days
“You wake up for work, only to realize that the stuffy nose and sore throat you had last night have gotten worse. Or alternatively, you wake up feeling fine, but your child comes in to tell you that they aren't feeling well. You head to the phone to call in sick. But before calling your supervisor, you realize you've exhausted your supply of sick days. What should you do? Given the variety of workplace situations, what you can do may vary. But your best option, whether you're sick or you're child is, is to fill out a form for the federal Family and Medical Leave Act.”
Later hours are a reality for many local employees
” Woodbury's new job entails working the 6 p.m.-6 a.m. shift three days a week as a thin film sputtering technician. He originally worked first shift at Axsys Technologies IR Systems in Nashua and worked when he could for UltraSource at night to make some extra money. But then, UltraSource posted two job openings on the third shift – which is not only late night and early-morning work, but weekend work, as well – Friday through Sunday. Woodbury then asked a friend at Axsys if he would consider applying for the position with him. The company was offering considerably more money, plus a 20 percent shift differential, Woodbury said – and because both men have babies on the way and go to school during the week, they decided the job switch might be a good idea.”
Palin's Nomination Fuels Debate Among Working Moms
“Breaking the so-called glass ceiling in politics or business is seen as mark of progress for women in America. But women who do that while they raise kids often receive critical scrutiny over how they manage work and family in a way that men never do.”
Clinton, Palin - what do female voters want?
“Today, women are struggling more than ever to figure out how to pay for child care and deal with rising health-care premiums. Too many are working in jobs that offer no paid family leave or even paid sick days and provide no flexibility when caregiving arrangements break down. These problems are real: A study released last month by the Center for Economic and Policy Research found that the United States comes in dead last in its generosity of paid parental leave when compared to 21 other developed countries. Another poll, released by the Public Welfare Foundation, found that 1 in 6 workers or their family members had been fired, suspended or punished for taking time off due to personal illness or to care for a sick child or relative.”
Good sense in Ohio is back from sick leave
“Three cheers for Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland and Sen. Sherrod Brown for warding off a job-killing con aimed at voters. Backers of other cons should get the hint. Strickland and Brown, an Avon Democrat, last week persuaded the Service Employees International Union to drop a petition-initiated ballot question destined for November's ballot. It would have required Ohio employers to offer paid sick days. Some political wizard believed such a ballot question would push up Democrats' Ohio turnout in November. But he or she failed to realize the SEIU's brainstorm would have starved Ohio of jobs. And that would wreck the state's first Democratic governorship in 16 years. Nice. Anyone warmer than Scrooge favors a fair sick-pay law. But anyone with an ounce of common sense also knows that Ohio, alone, cannot impose that cost if 49 other states don't.”
Fusing Politics and Motherhood in New Way
“Ms. Palin’s three-day maternity leave has now become legend among mothers. But aides say she eased back into work, first stopping by her office in Anchorage for a meeting, bringing not only the baby but also her husband to look after him. Many high-powered parents separate work and children; Ms. Palin takes a wholly different approach. “She’s the mom and the governor, and they’re not separate,” Ms. Cole said. Around the governor’s offices, it was not uncommon to get on the elevator and discover Piper, smothering her puppy with kisses.”
Blogs
Alternative For a Reason
“WFC Resources‘ September Trend Report zeroes in on compressed work weeks. Part of Susan Seitel’s column reports on studies by Brigham Young researchers Rex Facer and Lori Wadsworth, who are specializing in evaluating compressed schedules and reporting mostly favorable reviews.”
Best Places to Launch A Career AND Raise A Family
“BusinessWeek just came out with its annual list of the Best Places to Launch A Career, ranking 119 employers on areas such as pay, benefits, and training programs. To find out whether these companies are also family friendly, I compared BusinessWeek’s list to Working Mother Magazine’s annual list of the best 100 companies for working moms. I realize that the focus is on mothers, but aside from lactation rooms and women’s networks, the majority of perks available to working moms, such as back-up daycare and flexible schedules, are available to working dads, too. As for parental leave, many companies offer paid time off to moms as well as dads. Ernst & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and KPMG are the best companies to start your career and stick around once you have a family. These three companies, which hail from the accounting realm, rank in the top 10 of both lists.”
Flexibility at Work: Asking it of our Leaders and Ourselves
“Many of us will have seen the neat educational drawing from the 1950’s: “eight hours for work, eight hours for sleep, eight hours for leisure” for a balanced life. It feels so quaint, and speaks to a phantom work-family life that is reality for few Americans. Over 50 years ago most women did not work outside the home, and the prevailing philosophy of effective work was Taylor’s scientific management, which prescribed minimal worker control over time and task. On the plus side, workweeks were shorter and more regular. On the minus side, people had little control over their time at work. Management theory in the following decades has led to an emphasis on worker control.”
Jill Biden returned to work after a career break (and what we can learn from her example)
“Going back to school to jump start a career relaunch the way Jill Biden did is an excellent back-to-work strategy that can be calibrated to a person's schedule and professional goals. When doing research for Back on the Career Track, we interviewed women who participated in post-baccalaureate certificate programs and graduate school programs of every conceivable length and schedule. Take MBA programs, for instance. We learned about six-year, part-time MBA programs such as Boston University's Self-Paced Professional Evening MBA. Classes are typically offered at night when a spouse or relative can babysit, but one mom we spoke to was able to schedule some of her classes in this program during the day while her kids were in school.”
Global News
French loath to end 35-hour week
“France's decade-long experiment with a 35-hour work week is coming to an end, sort of. A new law allows companies to negotiate their way out of a rule that has drawn both ridicule and envy in other countries and that France's labour minister calls a ``straitjacket'' on the economy. Yet the law, which took effect just before France began returning from its long summer holiday, is meeting resistance from both workers and the employers it was meant to benefit, suggesting President Nicolas Sarkozy's headline reform may do little to boost growth. The 35-hour law wasn't just about France. It set economists well beyond its borders to wondering: Is this the future of work in the developed world? Instead, the ensuing decade saw rich nations' workers labouring ever more and more. Indeed, even French workers today average 41 hours a week of labour, despite the 35-hour rule, thanks to overtime and the time worked by those, such as farmers and the self-employed, who aren't subject to the measure.”
Parents can make the best leaders
“Organisations that are serious about retaining women and getting the most from them need to take steps to counter the prejudice that family and career cannot be combined. The "reinforced concrete barrier" Ms Brewer describes can best be broken by a change in attitude towards the skills women (and men) with family commitments bring to their jobs.”
Dramatic increase in working from home
“THE number of people 'teleworking' from home has risen dramatically over the past few years as bosses offer more work flexibility than ever, a survey revealed today. In the latest CBI/Pertemps Employment Trends Survey, 46 per cent of employers said they now offered teleworking to staff – a huge rise from 14 per cent two years ago and 11 per cent in 2004. Other strands of flexible working have also shot up, particularly term-time working, and job sharing, the report suggests.”
Mr. Maternity
“During the summer session, Sa'ar, together with partners in the coalition and opposition, managed to push through their first reading two bills that he believes could go far to improve the status of women in the workplace, and subsequently in Israeli society. Sa'ar is no newcomer to the field of women's issues. In the last Knesset, he served for two years as the chairman of the Committee on the Status of Women, where the challenges posed to working women - and particularly mothers - took center stage.”