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Vicki Shabo is the Director of Work and Family Programs at the National Partnership for Women & Families.
Vicki Shabo
Vicki Shabo is the Director of Work and Family Programs at the National Partnership for Women & Families.
Blog Post List
August 3, 2011
Roughly four million women give birth in the United States every year – and most choose to breastfeed (74 percent). After all, the nutritional value of breast milk is well documented. Numerous studies show that breastfeeding protects mothers and children from a range of acute and chronic health conditions. But with two-thirds of today’s working women returning to work within three months of giving birth, the lack of supportive workplace policies and laws is forcing too many nursing mothers to quit breastfeeding early – or never start. The good news is that several recent measures provide...
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May 25, 2011
Philadelphia’s workers are hoping the city will soon take a critical step toward changing the way workplaces honor families. As early as June, the Philadelphia City Council could approve a law that provides workers the right to earn paid sick time to recover from illness or care for a family member. With more than 210,000 working people in the city lacking this basic protection, establishing a paid sick days standard should be common sense. It’s simple: when workers and their families are healthier, our communities and businesses benefit. Yet 44 million workers in the United States lack paid...
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September 12, 2010
Grandparents are the glue that holds many families together—yet our workplace laws don’t honor their critical role. Grandparents play a more vital role than ever in building strong families and caring for our nation’s children. In addition to providing emotional and financial support, millions of grandparents act as primary caregivers for their grandchildren — a number that has increased since the start of the recession. And millions of younger workers care for aging or ill grandparents. Grandparents and grandchildren need workplace policies that help them meet their work and family...
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July 30, 2010
Last weekend and earlier this week, I was in Louisville, Kentucky talking about paid sick days and economic security with both labor leaders and state legislators who champion issues important to workers. Advocates who lead paid sick days campaigns routinely praise organized labor’s hard work on these issues—and it is obvious why. I had the honor of speaking to state labor leaders from all around the country—from Hawaii to Maine—at the AFL Workers’ Voice conference in Louisville. State labor federation leaders who work hand-in-hand with vibrant paid sick days campaigns in states like...
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July 28, 2010
Every day in the United States, more workers than many of us imagine face an impossible choice: go to work sick, or forgo a paycheck and risk job loss or workplace discipline. More than 40 million private sector workers in this country do not have access to even a single paid sick day. And when it comes to personal care workers—those who tend to the elderly and care for small children—more than half (52%) lack paid sick days. The need for paid sick days for direct care workers could not be more critical. With pay rates that average about $10 per hour, every cent earned is crucial to direct...
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February 24, 2010
The Family and Medical Leave Act turns 17 today. At the National Partnership, we are like proud parents. We remember the long fight to pass it, and the moment on February 5, 1993 when we stood beside President Clinton as he made it the very first bill he signed. For the first time, we had a national law to address the challenges facing workers who struggle to meet their job and family commitments. The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) was a huge step. It meant that millions of workers could take unpaid, but job-protected, leave to recover from illness or care for a sick family member or...
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