paid leave
Labor Day 2012 has been celebrated. The holiday speeches left unsaid what we now know to be fact: for too many workers, there are no paid days off. Zero. That's something, instead, to shout-out.
The United States is the only industrialized country in the world with no national law mandating paid time off for new parents. In fact, we are one of only four countries in the world without such a law.
WHAT'S HAPPENING
In America today, "having it all" looks more like "barely holding on."
It's time for the U.S. to catch up with the rest of the industrialized world and stand up for the rights of women and babies.
The sad truth is that becoming a mother in this country too often means the loss of a job and/or the beginning of financial hardship.
The sad truth is that millions of working mothers in this country find themselves without the support they need to care for their families and hold onto their jobs.
Much more important than the rhetorical war around Hilary Rosen and Ann Romney is the urgent need to finally adopt policies that address the needs of employed women and their families, now and in the future.