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Statement

America’s Moms, Families Cheer Historic Biden/Harris Administration Executive Order to Improve Care in Our Nation

April 18, 2023
Workplace Justice, Paid Family & Medical Leave, Equal Pay, Early Care & Education, Federal Budget, Immigration

Lisa Lederer, 202/371-1996

Statement of Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, Executive Director and CEO of MomsRising, the online and on-the-ground organization of more than one million mothers and their families, on today’s executive order from the Biden/Harris administration to build a care infrastructure:

“The executive order the Biden/Harris administration issued today is bold, transformative, and badly needed. At a time when millions of families cannot access or afford the child care, elder care, and/or disability care we need, these measures will support moms, family caregivers, care workers, businesses, communities, and our economy. This Executive Order puts the full weight of our federal government behind solutions to some of the most debilitating problems of our time. It will help address the child care crisis that has driven so many moms out of the workforce. It will provide some of the support family caregivers urgently need. And it will take steps toward ensuring that early educators, long-term care and domestic workers – who are mostly women of color and immigrant women doing vitally important work – are paid the fair, family-sustaining wages and benefits they deserve and that allow them to stay in this field.

“This executive order is a major and significant step forward, and now America’s moms, families and businesses call on Congress to follow the Biden Administration’s lead by immediately: passing comprehensive paid family and medical leave that covers all working people; making serious investments in comprehensive, high-quality, affordable child and aging/disability care; rooting out wage discrimination of all kinds; ensuring all care workers have a pathway to citizenship; and raising the minimum wage. 

“We can make the investments we need in a care infrastructure by creating a tax system that requires everyone – including the very wealthy and the richest corporations – to finally pay their fair share.

“Care makes all work possible and holds up our economy. We applaud the Biden/Harris administration actions today. This is in no small part due to the powerful, persistent work of our more than one million MomsRising members who have been raising their voices time and again, along with our many organizational partners, including the Care Can’t Wait coalition. Now, we look to Congress to act as well. We cannot wait any longer for the care infrastructure our country needs.”

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MomsRising.org is an on-the-ground and online grassroots organization of more than a million people who are working to increase family economic security, decrease discrimination against women and moms, and to build a nation where businesses and families can thrive. Established in 2006, MomsRising and its members are organizing and speaking out to improve public policy and to change the national dialogue on issues that are critically important to America’s families, including criminal justice reform, immigration policy reform, and gun safety. MomsRising is working for paid family and medical leave, affordable, high quality childcare and early learning, and for an end to the wage and hiring discrimination which penalizes women — particularly moms and women of color — and so many others. MomsRising advocates for access to healthy food for all kids, health care for all, earned sick days, and breastfeeding rights so that all children can have a healthy start. MomsRising maintains a Spanish language website: MamásConPoder.org. Sign up online at www.MomsRising.org — and follow us on our blog, and on Twitter and Facebook.