Activistas

Parents for Paid Leave: Join Us for a Call-In Playdate

The Parents for Paid Leave group is cookin' along mamas, and we hope you'll join our very grassroots effort to pass strong paid family leave legislation in the 2009 state legislative session.  We are pleased to already have a web site (many thanks to Andrea, who summed it up so very well: if it isn't online, it doesn't really exist) and a Facebook group (natch) where you can join up.

We'll focus most of our efforts on the state level, but just can't ignore the federal action - especially since there are two recently introduced paid family leave bills.  Yippee.  Someone's getting the message that we really need this.  We are networking like crazy at both levels. 

Get Involved!  We Need You! If you're up for getting involved in either effort, visit our site, join our Facebook group, and join us at 10 AM on Saturday, 6.14 @ Urban Grind NE for a call-in playdate to support the new federal legislation.  It would bring paid family leave to all corners of our country (even way out here in Ory-gun), not just a few states.  And don't forget your cell phone!  We'll have all the important phone numbers and suggestions for what to say, but no phones.

Can't be there?  No problem - just call from wherever you are.  It takes only a minute or two to leave a message with this important message:

I am thrilled to see Congress working toward paid family leave for America's working families.  Please co-sponsor HR 5873, the Family Leave Insurance Act of 2008, to get it moving and show the nation that here in Oregon, we feel strongly about this issue.

Plus, you can always join us at one of our 2nd Saturday strategy sessions.  They're fun, completely grassroots, and we actually get loads accomplished.  And just for the record, while Activistas is involved in this effort, the group is somethin' else entirely.

Parents for Paid Leave Group Meets this Saturday! Join Us.

Think paid family leave should be available to working families in Oregon?  Good news, mamas, because our newly formed Parents for Paid Leave group is meeting for our 2nd time this Saturday, 5.10.08 from 9:30 to 11 AM.  We'll be at Jennifer's house in SE Pdx - 4423 SE 30th Avenue (1 block N of Holgate) to be exact. 

Our first meeting was incredibly productive for three reasons:

1. We named ourselves (nobody is anybody without a catchy name, already),
2. We agreed to meet monthly until the next legislative session when, by the way, we plan to pass a bill, and
3. We got the sense that there are quite a few of us who feel VERY STRONGLY that our state require paid family leave. 

So... after we meet, greet, drink some coffee and get the kids occupied (first things first!) we have a loose agenda that includes: an overview of other states' programs and the current national and federal employee proposals, identifying Oregon opponents & partners, and outreach opportunities.  And anything else that pops up.

Can't Make It?  Catch us in June or July or August or, you get the picture.  We agreed to meet the 2nd Saturday morning of every single month, plus we'll report out here on Activistas if you prefer to keep tabs that way.  And you can always read all the terrifically enlightening things we've said on this topic by perusing our Working Parents index.

Wanna Learn More?  If you're the type to get the details for yourself, check out the National Partnership for Women & Families, they've got it covered.  You can even hear Senator Chris Dodd (bless him) and Debra Ness, Executive Director of NPWF (and definitely bless her), discuss the issue on Good Morning America back in September 2007.

See you Saturday, mamas.  Families need paid leave.  Help us make it a reality.

8 Weeks of National Paid Leave? Could be True!

Most of us have used the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) for childbearing or adopting. Many have used it to care for other family members.  And some true sandwich generation mamas for both.  Yikes.  Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and (!!) Ted Stevens (R-AK) have introduced legislation in D.C. to improve the existing FMLA from 12 weeks of unpaid leave to eight weeks of paid leave.  That is a really big deal.  National paid leave.  Get behind it, mamas.  With your support, this could actually happen - and maybe even before you need it next!

How it Would Work: In short, the Family Leave Insurance Act of 2007 would be paid for through an insurance fund financed by employees and employers equally (different than the proposed bill in Oregon which was to be 100% employee funded).  For wonky mamas, there's a simple but complete overview of proposed benefits in the continuation of this post, below. 

What You Can Do Now: Let our Senators know that you'd like to see this bill move - now.  Here's how:

• E-Mail: You can easily find your U.S. Senator and send them an e-mail - all you gotta say is "I am a voting parent in Oregon and urge you to support the Family Leave Insurance Act of 2007.  As I'm sure you have realized, the time is now to support working families.  Today's parents are ready and will vote accordingly.  Thank you."   
• Send a Letter: Download the letter attached to this post, sign it, and send it on in (it is for Sen. Smith, so you can simply change the name and address for Sen. Wyden , it's included on the 2nd page).  Download fmla_10_07_activistas.docx 
• Call 'Em: Better yet, ring them up in DC or Oregon - next to walkin' in their door, a personal phone call is the most effective means of conveying your message.  Smith: (503) 326-3386, Wyden: (503) 326-7525.  You can say exactly the same thing as the e-mail message, above.  Easy, easy.  You can even call at midnight and leave a message if you're just a little bit nervous!

Where do the Pres. Candidates Stand??  So true, we can't ignore the fact that there's a Presidential election coming up!  You can easily see where the '08 Presidential Candidates stand on this issue.  And be sure to check out our recent post on which candidate has us mamastituenets on the very front burner.  Who are you gonna support?

Happily for us balance-obsessed mamas, reforming the FMLA - and this whole work-family imbalance issue - looks to be a hot one about now.