http://www.clasp.org/issues/topic_in_focus.xml?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0003 In Focus articles from the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) en-us Thu, 23 May 2013 13:58:41 -0500 info@clasp.org webmaster@clasp.org 40 Mon, 22 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0066 On April 28, we will observe Workers' Memorial Day to remember the men and women who have suffered and died on the job from workplace injuries and diseases. Forty-two years ago, Congress passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act, with the goal of improving workplace safety and protecting workers from hazards on the job. Although there have been vast improvements since the lawaEUR(TM)s enactment, there is still much work to be done in guaranteeing every worker the right to a safe job. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0066 Fri, 01 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0063 Today, CLASP and its partner, the American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC), released a new tool for job quality advocates, including advocates for earned sick days and paid family leave. The jointly produced brief provides advocates with a primer on the nuts and bolts of the business certification movement and suggests ways to foster fruitful relationships between the movement and campaigns for improved job quality, such as earned sick days campaigns. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0063 Wed, 27 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0062 Advocates in Seattle fought hard to build the support necessary to pass the cityaEUR(TM)s Paid Sick and Safe Time (PSST) Ordinance. But the hard work did not end when the law passed in September 2011. Once the ink on SeattleaEUR(TM)s ordinance had dried, the process of implementing the law began. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0062 Wed, 13 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0059 Last week marked the twentieth anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which has offered millions of workers access to up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave. More than 100 million workers have accessed this leave to take care of newborns, family members and themselves. As we celebrate FMLA 20 years later, we are also reminded of how far the U.S. still has to go in offering paid leave and fully supporting the needs of children and families. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0059 Fri, 18 Jan 2013 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0056 While many people assume that paid sick days are widely available to all, that is far from the truth for too many workers. This critical workplace protection is important both to workers and consumers. A new poll demonstrates that restaurants that do not offer their employees the opportunity to earn paid sick days do so at their own peril. The survey, put out by the National Consumers League (NCL), found that 92 percent of consumers believe that it is very important or important that the servers and cooks in the restaurants they patronize do not cook or serve while sick. Well over half of respondents agreed on the importance of allowing these workers to earn paid sick days. With consumers expressing a clear preference for fair sick leave policies, the message to business owners is also clear: to satisfy customers, employers must provide restaurant workers with just working conditions, including earned sick days. Policymakers should take note as well. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0056 Mon, 07 Jan 2013 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0055 On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration proposed two broad new food safety rules, marking the first major food safety rulemaking since the 1930s. These rules are a major step forward for consumer safety. However, policymakers should take note that a major gap in labor protections for workers who handle our food continues to imperil the safety of our food system: most farmworkers and restaurant workers, as well as other food chain workers, receive no earned sick days, which means many are forced to come to work when sick. This lack of protections is not only unfair to workers, but also 1) dangerous for consumers, who risk infection and illness when they eat food handled by sick workers, 2) bad for businesses, and 3) harmful to the U.S. economy. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0055 Tue, 18 Dec 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0054 Add one more piece of evidence to the increasingly-difficult-to-ignore body of facts that suggests earned sick days aEUR" particularly for lower-wage workers aEUR" are crucial to our countryaEUR(TM)s economic success and familiesaEUR(TM) economic security. A new study by health economist J. Paul Leigh shows that the economic cost of workplace injuries among low-wage workers amounted to more than $39 billion in 2010. The high cost of workplace injuries among low-wage workers is particularly striking in light of recent research demonstrating that there is a significant correlation between lack of paid sick leave and the incidence of nonfatal occupational injuries. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0054 Tue, 13 Nov 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0053 Implementation of paid leave laws in states is a giant step forward. The California and New Jersey laws, although differing in detail, generally allow five to six weeks of partially paid family or medical leave. Unfortunately, many eligible workers are unaware of these laws, which are designed to help them meet their family and health concerns. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0053 Mon, 05 Nov 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0052 A new report sheds light on the challenges working parents face when their children get sick. According to the 2012 C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health, 33 percent of parents with children under age 6 say taking time off work when a child is sick is difficult because they may lose pay or even their job. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0052 Wed, 24 Oct 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0051 Sprained ankles, back injuries, vomiting, and stomach cancer. These are conditions that many workers without earned sick days silently endure in fear of losing their job if they take a day off work. Every day, poorly paid employees decide between their health and their paychecks, even giving up taking care of their children in order to provide a meal for them that night. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0051 Mon, 10 Sep 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0050 The Bureau of Labor Statistics has issued new findings from the American Time Use Survey, known as ATUS. For the first time, ATUS included questions about paid and unpaid leave (and job flexibility) and got answers from workers themselves. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0050 Fri, 31 Aug 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0049 Every month when the unemployment figures are released, journalists, policymakers, and advocates alike eagerly check to see whether the number has moved up or down. But the unemployment rate is just one indicator of the strength of our labor market. As we celebrate Labor Day, we need to pay attention not just to the number of jobs, but to their quality. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0049 Wed, 06 Jun 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0048 Many people have heard of Paid Time Off (PTO) banks, but the contours of such policies are often little understood, especially outside the human resources world. To shed light on PTO banks, CLASP and the Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR) have released a report using Bureau of Labor Statistics data to explore what is known, and what needs more study, about PTO banks. This report is a first step in understanding PTO banks so that further questions about PTO banks and how they affect low-wage workers and their employers can be explored. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0048 Fri, 11 May 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0047 Mother's Day unifies the nation as we all scurry to find the right Hallmark card, fancy flowers or some proverbial chocolates to honor she who labored us into this world. The treats, however, can't sweeten a bitter fact: our country, while touting that it values families, gives scant evidence of doing so, particularly when it comes to infants and their care. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0047 Tue, 08 May 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0046 CLASP's implementation guide is a step toward helping employers understand the D.C. paid sick days law, but it is not a substitute for guidance and a public awareness campaign by the D.C. government. CLASP continues to urge the D.C. government to help businesses and workers understand the paid sick days law so that D.C. is a healthier and more productive place to live and work. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0046 Fri, 06 Apr 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0045 The March employment report released this morning by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows the economy is growing, but at a rate that means pre-recession unemployment levels are still a ways off. Last month, the economy added 120,000 jobs. While economic growth is critical, it is equally important that these jobs are of good quality, earning benefits and wages that can support working families. This is important for both workers and employers alike. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0045 Fri, 02 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0044 Yesterday the Wall Street Journal wrote about paid sick days policies, and unfortunately they got it wrong. The article "Sick-Time Rules Re-emerge," highlighted the hesitations many businesses express when faced with the possibility of being required to offer paid sick time to employees. It's a fair concern. Many employers fear that paid sick days will simply cost too much money. What the article missed, however, was the voice of any business actually operating under a paid sick days law. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0044 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0043 Members of our armed services provide the country an invaluable service, but their families' service to them can sometimes go unrecognized. Yesterday, Michelle Obama joined the Department of Labor to announce new regulations that will, for the first time, make family members caring for veterans eligible for leave under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). With many veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and other long-term medical ailments that can reduce a family's financial security, this is an important step in increasing support for military families and their economic - as well as their physical - well-being http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0043 Thu, 05 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0042 The New Year is off to a good start for many workers in Connecticut who now have paid sick days thanks to a new law that went into effect Jan. 1. The law is a milestone. While San Francisco and Washington, D.C. have had paid sick days laws on the books for a few years now, Connecticut has the first statewide law in the country requiring that employers offer paid sick days. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0042 Wed, 02 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0041 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=work_life_and_job_quality&id=0041