Category: Money & Jobs

Blowing the Whistle on the ‘Mommy Track’ (July/August 1989)

and

From the July/August 1989 issue of Ms. magazine:

“Sooner or later, corporations will have to yield to the pressure for paid parental leave, flextime and childcare, if only because they’ve become dependent on female talent. The danger is that employers—no doubt quoting Felice Schwartz for legitimation—will insist that the price for such options be reduced pay and withheld promotions, i.e. consignment to the mommy track. Such a policy would place a penalty on parenthood, and the ultimate victims—especially if the policy trickles down to the already low-paid female majority—will of course be children.”

America Says It Values Black Women Leaders. It’s Time to Show It.

Black women across the country are making history winning elected office and leading political organizations, in greater numbers and at higher levels than ever before. Yet, we are still being asked to do more with less because of a massive gap in funding.

Even with the significant headwinds Black women face, people are choosing us to lead during one of the most tumultuous periods in recent history. That’s not an accident. Americans know we have the solutions these times require.

Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation: Women CEOs Finally Outnumber CEOs Named John; Washington State Could Get a Woman Governor

Weekend Reading for Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation. 

This week: For the first time, the four agencies most responsible for ensuring Americans have access to affordable housing are all led by women; there are finally more women CEOs than CEOs named John; the South Carolina Democratic Party convention elected Christale Spain, the first Black woman to lead the organization; and more.

Why Banking for the Public Good Is No Pipe Dream

A trio of bank runs at Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), Signature and Silvergate Bank probably has you sitting up and paying attention, possibly biting your nails. Is this the beginning of another financial unraveling? How could a tech bank as important and big as SVB go broke? Wall Street goes by rules different from those applied to you and me.

Three Reasons Congress Should Reject Medicaid Work Requirements

, and

On April 26, the House passed Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s debt ceiling bill, the “Limit, Save and Grow Act.” If enacted, the bill would create new work reporting requirements, stripping Medicaid coverage from adults unable to document eighty hours of work or community service per month.

Work reporting requirements are unnecessary, harmful and ultimately counter to the goals of the Medicaid program. Here’s why.

Welfare Is a Human Right: How Black Mothers Fought Their Own War on Poverty With Annelise Orleck

In her book, Storming Caesars Palace: How Black Mothers Fought Their Own War on Poverty, Annelise Orleck not only shares the history of Clark County Welfare Right Organization’s (CCWRO) ascent and activism but also provides an insightful guide to community organizing.

“I loved the CCWRO’s insistence that poor women are experts on poverty and can run their own programs better than so-called professionals. And they did! … They demanded to know why a state that took tax revenue from gambling and prostitution was considered morally acceptable, but mothers trying to feed their kids were called cheaters. They were fearless.”

From the Ashes of Rana Plaza: ‘Consumers Want to Know How Their Clothes Are Made’

and

The year 2013 saw the worst accident in the history of the international garment industry: A clothing factory collapsed outside of Dhaka, Bangladesh, killing at least 1,127 workers, mostly young women, and injuring another 2,500.

“Ten years later, the anniversary of the Rana Plaza disaster offers an opportunity to reflect on the progress that has been made and the work that still needs to be done to ensure decent conditions for Bangladesh’s more than four million garment workers.”

The Sustainable Climate Future Belongs to Women

The world cannot address the biggest crisis facing humanity without the full inclusion of women’s voices, work and wisdom. This starts by investing in women-led climate projects.

Our sisters on the frontlines of the climate crisis are doing all they can to protect our Mother Earth. What they need from us and the world is to support and acknowledge their efforts and ensure that their voices are at the front and center of decision-making tables about climate action.