April 3, 2009 .
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
Pay for Play? Tax Credits for Paid Time Off
“Economists are increasingly coming to the recognition that the current downturn is likely to be longer and more severe than they had expected at the time the last stimulus package was approved in February. As a result, there is likely to be interest in additional stimulus in order to boost the economy and lower the unemployment rate. One method for Congress to quickly boost demand in the economy while at the same time promoting important public ends is an employer tax credit for paid time off. This paid time off can take the form of paid family leave, paid sick days, paid vacation, or a shorter workweek. This tax credit can both provide short-term stimulus and also provide an incentive to restructure workplaces in ways that are more family friendly. It is possible that many workplaces may leave in place changes made to take advantage of this tax credit even after it has expired.”
Doing Whatever It Takes to Start a Second Career
“The impact of the economic and stock market declines on retirees and workers about to retire has been especially pronounced. While younger workers have time to recover some of their losses, many older workers and retirees have to follow Mr. Williams’s example and remake themselves for the job market. [. . .] Peter Cappelli, director of the Center for Human Resources at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, said he did not recommend retraining for workers who had successful careers. Instead, he suggested that they consider part-time or contract work in their fields, where they can use their experience and skills to their advantage. [. . .] The good news for older workers, he said, is that they may be more flexible about taking part-time or seasonal work, unless they have to replace a large income. In surveys, older workers and retirees say they want jobs without the time demands or pressures of their old career tracks.”
Setting Boundaries
“At some point, I simply had to decide that I was a working mom again. I hadn't planned to quit working, but after my second child was born three and a half years ago I never fully regained the sense of routine and structure I had before. Combined with the haze of new parenthood, freelancing at home had been a murky business at best. The stay-at-home mommies in suburbia didn't know what to make of me. When I couldn't get to their playgroup because too often it fell during work hours, they booted me. The working moms in heels, lipstick and clothes that weren't blotched with yogurt didn't take me seriously either.”
Men feel conflict in work-life balance
“A recent survey from the Families and Work Institute found that women in two-worker households are earning more money than their male partners, yet men are feeling more stress about the work-life balance.”
Private employers nervous over proposed family medical leave for workers
“Legislation that would give federal workers paid family medical leave has the private sector on edge, with Corporate America fearing, "we're probably next." The Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act, which would give more than 600,000 federal workers four weeks of paid family leave to care for a newborn or adopted child, cleared a House subcommittee last week. The bill also would let federal workers use up to eight weeks of accrued paid sick time or annual leave immediately following the first four weeks of parental leave. A similar bill has been introduced in the Senate.”
Paid sick leave bill gains support
“A bill before the General Assembly that promises to give Connecticut employees paid sick time, up to 6.5 days a year, appears to be gaining traction with support from public health advocates, food service workers and consumers. The bill affects any business with 50 or more employees. Those businesses account for 54,221 food-service workers. If the Legislature passes the bill, Connecticut would become the first state in the nation to guarantee ill waiters, waitresses, cooks and other food handlers paid sick days. Only San Francisco and Washington, D.C., provide restaurant workers similar paid sick time, says Jeanne Mejeur, program director at the National Conference of State Legislatures, although three other states, Massachusetts, California and Illinois, are considering such legislation.”
Working it out
“There comes a point, during every maternity leave, when a new mommy looks at the calendar and realizes the end is fast approaching. Those first few months with a new baby seem to exist outside of regular life; they're joyous and exhausting and intense. Then comes the prospect of reentering reality, parting with the baby who has been with you all day, entering the realm of drop-offs and pickups, goodbyes and hellos. I'm at that point for now, but I've been here before, so I know the answers to some common return-to-work questions. Will the baby remember me? Yes. Will I make it through the day without crying? Yes, eventually. Will I like anything about returning to work? Sure. You'll love being able to eat your lunch with two hands.”
When the Stork Carries a Pink Slip
“HERE’S a pop quiz: Which of the following would violate federal employment law? 1. Laying off a pregnant woman. 2. Laying off a woman on maternity leave. Pencils down. The answer is “neither.” It may not sound fair, as the national layoff tsunami is swamping even households with new infants, or babies en route. But it is entirely legal to lay off a pregnant woman or a woman on maternity leave — as long as the employer can make the case that she is being let go for a reason unrelated to her pregnancy.”
Blogs
The Mental and Economic Benefit of Open, Flexible Work for Moms
“Open Flexible work gives parents the ability to decide how, when and where they work, regardless of their level in an organization. Examples of Open Flexible work are: flexible scheduling; telecommuting/virtual work; job sharing; career customization; taking babies to work; part-time work options and quality on-ramps for parents who take time away from work. When a group of 11 moms were asked if they ever submitted a request for Open/Flexible work, 18% said: ‘Yes, and it was approved!’ 9% said: ‘Yes, and it was rejected’, 18% said: ‘No, I think such a request would ruffle feathers.’, 45% said: ‘No, I am not sure how.’, and 9% said: ‘No , my boss is totally inflexible.’”
The Tension of the High Achieving New Mom
“I started off as a coach for high-performing off-ramping women – women who step off the fast track to care for young babies – because I believed that was what I needed when I left my fast track job to care for my two boys born 16 months apart. I’d read the research about how these women lose their confidence and how the few that successfully returned to the workforce returned to lower pay and slower (mommy) tracks, and I wanted to do something about it. After a few months of coaching only women out of the workforce (paid for by the employer they left who wanted them to come back), a potential corporate client asked if I would coach women who were still working. Specifically, they wanted me to coach three high-potential women who were pregnant.”
WorkLifeLaw's Employer Alerts Suggest Ways to Prevent Pay Discrimination Against Part-Time Employees
“As may be evident from the title, our Employer Alerts are advisories for employers, giving them updates about laws and rulings in the family responsibilities discrimination area that they should be familiar with to avoid liability. I am both the author of the Alert and a management-side employment attorney, and I want to be clear that the purpose of the Alert is not to advocate for litigation against employers. The topic of discussion in the Alert you are referencing was the recent passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 (the Ledbetter Act), which many organizations and attorneys on both sides of the issue agree will lead to an increase in the number of pay discrimination claims and calls for increased vigilance on the part of employers.”
Europe's Solution: Take More Time Off
“While many European companies have long turned to shorter workweeks and mandatory time off in economic downturns, the idea has never really caught on in the United States. Despite reports of unpaid furloughs and wage cuts, American companies continue to rely heavily on layoffs to control labor costs. Much of this has to do with cultural differences as well as the social safety net that many European governments offer. For American employers, is one approach — layoffs versus shorter workweeks and wage cuts — better for the economy? Could it be true — as the Germans argue — that keeping more workers on the job is a good way to stimulate the economy in a recession?”
Global News
EU working time directive talks collapse
“The EU was thrown into disarray earlier today when all-night talks between governments and MEPs over changes to rules governing the 48-hour working week collapsed. The failure of the negotiations means Britain and around a dozen other of the 27 countries involved will retain the right for individuals to opt out of the maximum 48-hour working week laid down by an EU directive. But it leaves the question of how to handle the hours of key workers such as hospital doctors and firefighters in chaos, as a ruling by the EU's highest court that inactive as well as active "on call time" counts towards working hours remains in place. As a result governments, including that of the UK, which have invested hundreds of millions to recruit new staff, are worried they may be forced to take on even more public servants.”
Cut in maternity leave to give fathers more time off
“Statutory maternity leave should be cut to six months and new paid leave given to fathers, a report from the equalities watchdog says. The focus on maternity leave has entrenched the notion that only mothers look after children and damages women’s careers by making them less attractive employees, the group warns. New mothers currently get nine months of paid leave, six weeks at 90 per cent of their salary and the rest at the statutory rate of £117.18 per week. The Government has promised that mothers will get a full year’s leave by 2010. Fathers currently get two weeks leave at the statutory rate.”