June 5, 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
Despite YouTube Maneuver, Parental Leave Bill Passes House
“With all the issues that vex the relationship between Uncle Sam and North Korea, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba, leading figures in those countries might be surprised to see themselves dragged into a domestic debate over paid parental leave for federal employees. Yet there they are -- North Korea's Kim Jong Il, Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Venezuela's Hugo Chávez and Cuba's Fidel Castro -- pictured as symbols against legislation that would allow federal employees four weeks of paid leave for the birth or adoption of a child. But this YouTube tactic by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) didn't work. Despite his imaginative video, the House passed the measure yesterday, 258 to 154.”
For the 'funemployed,' unemployment is welcome
“While millions of Americans struggle to find work as they face foreclosures and bankruptcy, others have found a silver lining in the economic meltdown. These happily jobless tend to be single and in their 20s and 30s. Some were laid off. Some quit voluntarily, lured by generous buyouts. Buoyed by severance, savings, unemployment checks or their parents, the funemployed do not spend their days poring over job listings. They travel on the cheap for weeks. They head back to school or volunteer at the neighborhood soup kitchen. And at least till the bank account dries up, they're content living for today. [. . .] Never heard of funemployment? Here's Urban Dictionary's definition: ‘The condition of a person who takes advantage of being out of a job to have the time of their life. I spent all day Tuesday at the pool; funemployment rocks!’”
Working Outside the Box
“At Marshall University's Lewis College of Business, Uday Tate, director of the school's Executive MBA program, described flexible working conditions as ‘the norm of the day.’ ‘If you're a sales person and you're making sales electronically, you still have those obligations to meet,’ said Tate, providing an example of a profession that lends itself to a flexible work schedule. "And preliminary research indicates that productivity has gone up because of empowerment. ‘One of the keys to having this flexible work is I can set up my own timing schedule and do other things with my personal time. We have become multi-taskers, and that matches very well to these flexible working conditions.’ Tate said the college of business offers its instructors and students some online classes to help participants balance their day jobs, their families and social lives and their education.”
Paid Parental Leave Helps Families and the Economy
“In the short term, a lack of paid parental leave means that family income takes a harsh blow when a new child arrives and new parents must cut back on goods and services in the private-sector economy. Two-parent families typically need the income of both parents, and single parents have no one else to rely on. Women’s earnings are increasingly important to family well-being. Women contribute 44 percent of family income in dual-earner couples, according to a recent survey by the Families and Work Institute, and women are the sole breadwinner in a rising number of families. In the longer term, family incomes and the broader economy suffer because women who do not have access to paid maternity leave earn less over time. Men and children suffer, too, because men are generally the higher-wage earners and therefore take unpaid leave less frequently. Lack of paid parental leave deprives men of the benefit of bonding with and caring for their new infant.”
As Slump Drags On, Retirement Dreams Slip Away
“The turbulent economy is changing people's attitudes about retirement. Among those most affected are people who are near retirement age, but not quite there yet. As the stock market and the job market have headed south, some people, such as 62-year-old Richard Rudy, have had to delay retirement. This is the time of his life when Rudy thought he'd be able to start taking things a little easier. After working for decades as a salesman and product representative, Rudy planned to be moving toward retirement now. Instead, he's back in school.”
Katty Kay [Interview]
“Katty Kay explains how valuable women are in the workplace, even though they work in different ways than men. (05:21)”
Investing in balance
“In 1995, CPA Shannon Kirkpatrick earned her first promotion with accounting firm KPMG, becoming a manager in the Baton Rouge office’s tax division. A year later, she and her husband had their first child. By 2000, Kirkpatrick had been promoted again, this time to senior manager. That same year the couple welcomed twin boys. Kirkpatrick was experiencing big demands personally and professionally, but she decided the two worlds could coexist. Despite the rigors of a corporate, client-based position with exhausting seasonal hours, she didn’t opt out, but continued to excel. In 2007, she was promoted to tax managing director, the No. 2 position in the division.”
Blogs
Taxpayers on the Hook for New Government Benefit?
“In another demonstration of Democrats’ not understanding the impact the current recession is having on Americans nationwide, the Congress is set to consider as early as today, new legislation, H.R. 626, that guarantees four weeks of paid parental leave for government employees at a cost of close to $1 billion to the rest of the taxpayers. The rationale behind the bill -- according to its Democratic sponsor -- is to make federal employment more appealing in the job market and to increase employee retention. Never mind the fact the pay gap between public and private sector employment is increasing at breakneck speed. A study released in April by the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that government benefits rose three times more than those in the private sector last year. Moreover, public employees are earning an average $13.38 per hour in benefits, while private sector workers earn only $7.98.”
The Case for 'Womenomics'
“’Womenomics’ comes out at a time when our country is juxtaposing a recession and job losses with policy experts aimed at changing our countries' work-life policies. One such organization is the Workplace Flexibility 2010 project, which released its first report -- based on 5 years of work -- last month. It's ‘a blueprint to make flexible work arrangements the norm across income levels, genders and generations,’ says the project's co-director Katie Corrigan. All workplaces should offer flexible work arrangements, time off and career maintenance and re-entry, the report states. ‘We found flexible work arrangements aren’t needed by one population,’ Corrigan says. ‘Our report includes solutions to making flexible the norm [for everyone]. Research shows low-wage workers need the same flexibility for the same reasons as anyone else. They don’t have support at home or income at home to buy support like child care. They have much less access than higher wage workers.”
A Federal Paid Vacation Mandate?
“The U.S. Congress recently announced the Paid Vacation Act of 2009, sponsored by Congressman Alan Grayson (D-FL). Under the Act, employers of 100 or more people will be required to provide at least one week of paid vacation time to every eligible employee. After three years, the Act will expand the requirement to companies employing 50 or more people, and increase the paid vacation to two weeks for employers of 100 or more. To be eligible, employees need to have worked for the company for one year. Part-time workers are also eligible for the paid vacation as long as they work at least 25 hours per week and 1250 hours per year.”
Worst argument ever...
“Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), expressing her support for a bill that would grant four weeks of paid family leave for federal employees, recently made note of international standards on the issue. "163 countries have recognized the importance of providing paid leave to families," Maloney said. "163 countries cannot be wrong." The point, of course, was to point out something of a global consensus on the issue. There are certain basic employee benefits that should be available, and as the argument goes, if 163 countries already offer paid family leave, maybe it's time for the United States to step up. In response, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), easily one of Congress' most embarrassing members, produced a video attacking the proposal. Chris Harris notes one of the video's key arguments.”
Global News
Get a work-family balance, Obama-style
“When President Obama's duties at the D-Day commemorations are over he plans to dodge the Sarkozys and have fun with his family in Paris. Here is a chief executive who knows his priorities. [. . .] The President has form here. On a trip to Prague he snubbed his hosts to go out for dinner with Michelle. He has a keen sense of how to avoid the unnecessary nonsense that comes with the job. Rude? Not a bit. We should applaud him for cutting the crap. And if we want him to have a fresh and focused mind we need him to have a bit of fun too.”
Employers 'targeting pregnant women for redundancy'
“About 30,000 women are estimated to lose their jobs as a result of pregnancy every year, according to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, but that figure is expected to rise because of the economic downturn. The government is not collecting data on this kind of discrimination, and it is too early for the tribunals service to have tracked a spike, but campaigners say a wealth of anecdotal evidence suggests there has been a steep increase. Camilla Palmer, a lawyer specialising in pregnancy and maternity-related discrimination with Leigh Day & Co, said that more people were losing their jobs across the board, but pregnant women and new mothers appeared to be disproportionately affected.”
Paternity leave scheme shelved by Lord Mandelson
“PLANS to allow parents to share a year’s paid maternity leave have been shelved by Lord Mandelson after complaints from businesses. The pledge, contained in Labour’s manifesto at the last election, would have given fathers six months’ paid leave to look after a baby, allowing mothers to return to work early. Ministers also promised to extend paid maternity leave from nine to 12 months. The plans were seen as a key plank of Labour’s family-friendly agenda, giving parents more flexibility on who looked after the children. They would also have allowed people in lesbian and gay civil partnerships to share maternity leave.”