This Women’s Equality Day, we plan to start spreading this message in Philadelphia through a new campaign to honor businesses that ensure all of their workers have an opportunity to earn paid sick days.

What does women’s equality have to do with paid sick days?  Well, many women end up in low-paying jobs with few opportunities to advance – or to earn sick days.  Yet despite the constraints these jobs place, women still act as the primary caregivers in their families, sometimes finding themselves sandwiched between caring for their children and their parents at the same time.

Having no sick days is a double-whammy when women still receive 20 - 30 cents less for every dollar a man makes.  Missing even one day - particularly for working mothers - can undermine a woman's financial stability

In order to honor the businesses that understand that paid sick days lead to financial stability for their workers (and their bottom line), the Coalition for Healthy Families and Workplaces will start distributing decals on Friday that let the business proclaim their support for healthy workers and healthy customers.  If you are in the Philadelphia area, we hope you can join us, and if you know of a business who offers paid sick days, please ask them to sign up for our decal!

This post is part of the #HERvotes blog carnival.