Parents for Paid Leave

Paid Family Leave Hearing: 4/8 at 3 pm (Your presence needed!!)

We are happy to announce that there will be a hearing in the Senate Commerce and Workforce Development Committee next Wednesday April 8th at 3 pm.  This is the first hearing where the 2009 Paid Family Leave Insurance bill will be considered.  It is very important that we have many, many people there to show support for this. 

If you believe that in these tough economic times families need a safety net as much as banks and automakers - you should come.

If you believe that it's wrong to force people to choose between caring for their family members or providing for them - you should come.

If you believe that mothers and fathers should have time to bond with new babies for more than a week or two after birth - you should come.

You've been supporting this group for a year or more.   You've been keeping up on the progress of this bill.  Now is the time to act.  We know how hard it is to get to Salem - especially if you are already stretched to balance the demands of work and family - but believe us when we say it.really.helps. 

The hearing will start promptly at 3, so we are asking people to meet on the capitol steps at 2:30 so we can get everyone settled in the hearing room before it begins.  You do not need to talk, you just need to get there, sit, and listen (oh, and wear a red or purple shirt if you have one).  Bring your kids with you, bring your spouse and/or parents too.  The more the merrier - and even better if the group reflects the generations of folks affected by our lack of family-supportive policies. 

The details:

What: Hearing of the Commerce and Workforce Development Committee to consider Senate Bill 966. 

When: Wednesday, April 8th. 
Meet on the front steps of the capitol at 2:30 pm (the hearing is likely to last until 4:30 - if you can stay that long).

Please join us.

The time is now. Help us pass paid family leave in Oregon.

The legislature will soon be considering a paid family leave insurance bill that will allow Oregon's workers some support during critical times when they need to care for a family member.  Please see the end of this post for ways you can help!

What would the program look like? 

• For those who are currently eligible for FMLA/OFLA, which allows some workers 12-weeks of unpaid time off to welcome a child or care for a sick loved one, this bill would allow for 6 of those weeks to be paid at $300/week (roughly minimum wage).  
• This insurance fund would be employee-funded through a 2-pennies-per-hour payroll deduction and would be administered by the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries.  There would be no contribution by employers or the state.
• Employers with fewer than 25 employees would have the choice to opt-in, but would not be required to do so.  Only those employees paying into the fund would have the option to collect from it. 

In these economic times, families are struggling.  The majority of Oregon's workers are caring for a child or other family member.  Paid family leave insurance means not having to choose between providing for and caring for your family. 

We need your help!  This bill was narrowly defeated in 2007.  Please tell your legislators not to make the same mistake twice.  This year we need to support Oregon's workers by passing paid family leave insurance. 

What can you do?

• Send an email or call your legislators asking them to support this bill.  If they already support it, ask them to show it by co-sponsoring.
• Join the Parents for Paid Leave Mailing List and/or Facebook Group - this is the best way for us to keep you posted on the bill's progress.
• Write a letter to the editor for your local paper.  These are short, easy, and a good way to get the dialog going about why this is so important to families. 
• Tell us your story!  Did you have an experience with unpaid leave when you needed to care for a family member?  What happened?  

With your help this will happen in 2009.  Thank you.

It's time. Help us pass paid family leave!

The legislative session begins next week and our grassroots movement is swelling, but we still need your help.  There are a couple of ways to get involved:
1) Join our mailing list
2) Join our Facebook group (also very important)
3) Join the Paid Leave Coalition's list of supporters
4) Tell us your story! 

If you could do any of these, we'd be happy.  If you could do all of them, we'd be thrilled.  If you could encourage your Oregon friends and family to do them too...well...we'd see Oregon successfully pass a paid family leave law in '09. 

Also, please join us for our next meeting on 1/10/09 from 9:30-11 at Urban Grind East (NE 22nd & Oregon St).  Kids are welcome too.

Share your story

Did you know that only 7% of employers offer paid family leave to their employees?  This is paid time off that can be taken for maternity or paternity leave or days off to care for a sick family member (including a child).  Many people who need family leave take a combination of sick days, vacation days and unpaid time to get it. Leaving them with no paid days off when they return to work.  Many also incur debt from their unpaid time off.  And 51% of private-sector employees don't even get that!  Those folks don't have a single paid sick day through their job, so when they have or adopt a baby, or need to care for a sick family member, they have to take unpaid time off or return to work too quickly. 

Please, tell us what you did.  Did you have paid leave when you needed it?  If so, how much?  If you didn't, what did you do?  Take unpaid time?  Return to work quickly?  What impact do you think that had on your family?

Your personal stories make a huge difference when we're talking to legislators. Tales of parents who have to choose between being there for their newborn children or sick family members, or losing days or weeks of needed pay, help legislators understand the reality of the challenges Oregon's families face. Please help us by sharing your story here.

Paid Leave Documentary - featuring Parents for Paid Leave

Over the summer some of our parent members were featured in a documentary about paid family leave. You can watch it here. The piece was filmed in Portland, produced by Al Jazeera English and aired on their networks throughout Europe this past week.  We think it makes a good case for the need for paid family leave that supports America's working families, and hope this issue will be getting some media coverage closer to home very soon. 

The women who were interviewed did a fantastic job of sharing their stories, don't you think?  If you'd like to share yours, please do so here.  They are very important in helping folks in Salem understand why this is so very important to Oregon families. 

Join Us for our October Meeting this Saturday (10/11)

We will be holding our monthly meeting this Saturday (10/11) from 9:30-11 am at Urban Grind East (at NE 22nd Ave & Oregon St)  Please join us and hear about the progress towards paid family leave in Oregon.  Also, we will screen a short documentary about paid leave that was filmed this past summer in Portland, and which features some of our very own Parents for Paid Leave members! 

We love seeing new faces at these meetings, so please join us.  Kids (as always) are welcome.

Grassroots Fundraising at its Best!

Fundraising multi-family garage sale ~ Saturday 9.20

Please donate or buy at our multi-family garage sale in Portland on Saturday 9.20 from 10 am to 3 pm.  We'll be in a member's driveway in the NE Fremont neighborhood, in the area of NE 47th & Siskiyou.  Look for a sign on that corner.  And if you'd like to donate salable items, we'll take 'em!  Please email Andrea to arrange delivery between now and sale day.  Thanks!

Wondering why we need funds?  We've already spent money on this web site and business cards, and anticipate paying for gas to get our citizen lobbyist back and forth to Salem when the time comes. 

Please join us for our monthly meeting on Saturday 9.13.08

We will be having our regular monthly '2nd Saturda'y meeting on Saturday, September 13th from 9:30 - 11 AM.  We'll meet at Urban Grind East, and as always, kids are welcome.  We'd love to see some new faces, so please join us to hear what we're doing and how much progress we're making.

We will be having our regular monthly '2nd Saturda'y meeting on Saturday, September 13th from 9:30 - 11 AM.  We'll meet at Urban Grind East, and as always, kids are welcome.  We'd love to see some new faces, so please join us to hear what we're doing and how much progress we're making.

Please join us for our monthly meeting 8/9/08

We will be having our regular monthly meeting on Saturday, August 9th from 9:30 - 11 am.  We'll meet at Urban Grind East, and as always, kids are welcome.  We'd love to see some new faces, so please join us.