Unfinished Business (33 page)

the Evernote unlimited-vacation benefit
Ibid.

In an interview with the tech site
Todd Wasserman, “Coming to a Couch Near You: A New Wave of Telecommuting,”
Mashable
, April 10, 2014,
mashable.com/2014/04/10/​the-telecommuting-​dream-is-dead
.

firms like Goldman Sachs
Shayndi Raice, “Goldman Seeks to Improve Working Conditions for Junior Staffers,”
Wall Street Journal
, October 28, 2013,
online.wsj.com/​news/​articles/​SB10001424052702303471004​579164051099280722
.

Morgan Stanley's chief executive
William Alden and Sydney Ember, “Banks Ease Hours for Junior Staff, but Workload Stays Same,”
New York Times
, April 9, 2014,
dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/04/09/​banks-ease-​hours-for-junior-staff-​but-workload-stays-same
.

“I know we discussed this a while ago”
Stephanie Emma Pfeffer, “10 Steps to Negotiating for a Flexible Work Arrangement,”
Woman's Day
, July 10, 2013,
womansday.com/​life/​work-money/​tips/​a7013/flex-time
.

British economists
Andrew J. Oswalk, Eugenio Proto, and Daniel Sgroi, “Happiness and Productivity,” University of Warwick Working Paper, February 10, 2014,
www2.warwick.ac.uk/​fac/soc/​economics/​staff/​eproto/​workingpapers/​happinessproductivity.pdf
.

the results-only work environment
Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson,
Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It: The Results-Only Revolution
(New York: Portfolio, 2008), eBook, p. 10.

“This program was based on the premise”
Hubert Joly, “Best Buy CEO on Leadership: A Comment I Made Was Misconstrued,”
Star Tribune
, March 17, 2013,
startribune.com/​opinion/​commentaries/​198546011.html
.

the Gap adopted ROWE
“Diversity and Inclusion,” Gap Inc.,
Social & Environmental Responsibility Report 2011/2012
,
gapinc.com/​content/​csr/​html/​employees/​diversity-and-inclusion.html
.

insist that supervisors be clear
Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson, “How to Get Employees to Manage Themselves,” ChangeThis, issue 106-01, June 5, 2013,
changethis.com/​manifesto/​show/106.01.ManageWork/
.

“We very much focus on results”
Interview with Sabrina Parsons, chief executive officer, Palo Alto Software, December 17, 2014.

“We've given them a place”
Ibid.

“Businesses operating in this skills-scarce world”
Richard Dobbs, Anu Madgavkar, Dominic Barton, et al., “The World at Work: Jobs, Pay, and Skills for 3.5 Billion People,” McKinsey Global Institute, McKinsey & Company, June 2012,
mckinsey.com/​insights/​employment_and_growth/​the_world_at_work
.

He sees those same forces
Bill Gates, “Bill Gates—2008 World Economic Forum—Creative Capitalism,” Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, January 24, 2008,
gatesfoundation.org/​media-center/​speeches/​2008/01/bill-​gates-2008-world-economic-forum
.

We used to have an infrastructure of care
“Latest Annual Data,” United States Department of Labor, 2013,
dol.gov/​wb/​stats/recentfacts.htm
.

“an infrastructure for care”
Ai-Jen Poo, with Ariane Conrad,
The Age of Dignity: Preparing for the Elder Boom in a Changing America
(New York: New Press, 2015), p. 143.

High-quality and affordable childcare
The Family Care Alliance includes a Family Care Navigator on their website that helps caregivers find support services in their states, Link2Care, an online discussion and support group managed by the Alliance and the National Center on Caregiving, which is a clearinghouse for all federal legislation on caregiving policy and can be a resource for those who want to get involved. They have a free electronic newsletter available at
caregiver.org
, where you can subscribe to a twice-monthly briefing on the legislation, programs, and funding. See “About FCA,” Family Caregiver Alliance,
caregiver.org/about-fca
, and “Newsletters,” Family Caregiver Alliance,
caregiver.org/​newsletters
.

Investment in early education
The United States is barely managing to invest in state-funded pre-K, meaning two years of school before students enter kindergarten. The percentage of four-year-olds enrolled in state-funded pre-K has doubled in the past decade, but it is still only at 28 percent. Ten states have no public pre-K options at all. See W. Steven Barnett, Megan E. Carolan, James H. Squires, and Kirsty Clarke Brown, “The State of Preschool 2013,” National Institute for Early Education, 2013,
nieer.org/​sites/​nieer/​files/​yearbook2013.pdf
.

Oklahoma is the shining light of universal pre-K that can illuminate a path for other states to follow. All pre-K teachers in Oklahoma have a college degree, a certificate in early-childhood education, and they're paid the same as elementary, middle, and high school teachers. See Robin Young interview with Steven Dow, “Why Oklahoma's Universal Pre-K Is Successful,”
Here & Now
, February 20, 2014,
hereandnow.wbur.org/2014/02/20/​universal-pre-kindergarten
.

Oklahoma treats pre-K like any other grade in the system, and the state has allowed school districts to partner with federal programs like Head Start and other outside organizations in order to shore up funding. See “Oklahoma,” National Institute for Early Education, 2013,
nieer.org/​sites/​nieer/​files/​Oklahoma_0.pdf
.

Oklahoma even sends social workers to coach stressed-out parents on how to raise their kids. See Nicholas Kristof, “Oklahoma! Where the Kids Learn Early,”
New York Times
, November 9, 2013,
nytimes.com/2013/11/10/​opinion/​sunday/​kristof-oklahoma-where-​the-kids-learn-early.html
.

The Center for American Progress (CAP) has a plan for getting two years of universal pre-K for all children. Under CAP's plan, the federal government would match state expenditures up to $10,000 per child annually. Preschool would be free for poor families, and wealthier families would be charged on a sliding scale depending on their financial circumstances. Universal childcare won't come cheap, but as a society we'll reap the benefits. See Cynthia G. Brown, Donna Cooper, Juliana Herman, et al., “Investing in Our Children: A Plan to Expand Access to Preschool and Child Care,” Center for American Progress, 2013,
americanprogress.org/issues/​education/​report/2013/02/07/52071/​investing-in-our-children
.

Georgia also has universal pre-K, and other states like New York and Minnesota are working on it. See Reid Wilson, “New York Will Begin Universal Pre-kindergarten,”
Washington Post
, March 31, 2014,
washingtonpost.com/​blogs/​govbeat/​wp/2014/03/31/​new-york-will-begin-​universal-pre-kindergarten
.

Comprehensive job protection
“Supreme Court Backs Pregnant UPS Worker,”
Forbes
, March 25, 2015,
forbes.com/​sites/​ashleaebeling/2015/03/25/​supreme-court-backs-pregnant-ups-worker
. Though there are already some federal legal protections for pregnant women—through the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, and the Family and Medical Leave Act—judicial interpretations of these laws still have plenty of loopholes. As a result, pregnant women are often denied leave or accommodations. See “It Shouldn't Be a Heavy Lift: Fair Treatment for Pregnant Workers,” National Women's Law Center, June 2013,
nwlc.org/​sites/​default/​files/​pdfs/​pregnant_workers.pdf
.

This report describes the ways in which pregnant women have not been accommodated by their employers, despite the existing laws that are meant to protect them. For example, a fast food worker in Washington, D.C., was barred from taking extra bathroom breaks and disciplined for drinking water on the job; a
Rent-a-Center employee was forced to go on unpaid leave and ultimately fired; and a UPS employee was not allowed light duty even though nonpregnant injured workers were given light duties when they had similar physical restrictions.

To extend job protections for pregnant workers, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act should be passed. See “S.942: Pregnant Workers Fairness Act,”
Congress.gov
, 2013,
congress.gov/​bill/113th-congress/​senate-bill/942
.

On the state and local levels, twelve states and two cities have passed laws requiring businesses to provide “reasonable accommodations” to pregnant workers, ranging from a transfer to a less strenuous position to additional bathroom and water breaks. See “Reasonable Accommodations for Pregnant Workers: State Laws,” National Partnership for Women & Families, April 2014,
nationalpartnership.org/​research-library/​workplace-fairness/​pregnancy-discrimination/​reasonable-accommodations-for-​pregnant-workers-state-laws.pdf
.

In March 2015 the Supreme Court handed down an important decision in
Young v. United Parcel Service
135 S. Ct. 1338 (2015), ruling that employers must at least provide pregnant workers with the same kinds of accommodations they provide to other groups of workers who are temporarily prevented from doing their normal jobs.
Young v. United Parcel Service
135 S. Ct. 1338 (2015).

Higher wages and training
See Caring Across Generations, an organization building a national movement of the “caring majority” by executing on four major program areas: culture change work; local, state and federal policy advocacy; online campaigning; and field activities and civic engagement,
caringacross.org/​about-us
.

According to the second edition of AARP's State Scorecard, the costs of eldercare are unmanageable for the vast majority of Americans. On average, nursing home costs are 246 percent of the median household income for seniors. Even in the five most affordable states, the cost is 171 percent of median income. Home care is more affordable, but it's still 84 percent of median income, and as AARP puts it, “The typical older family cannot sustain these costs for long periods.” See Susan C. Reinhard, Enid Kassner, Ari Houser, et al., “Raising Expectations: A State Scorecard on
Long-Term Services and Supports for Older Adults, People with Physical Disabilities, and Family Caregivers,” AARP, 2014,
aarp.org/content/​dam/​aarp/​research/​public_policy_institute/​ltc/2014/​raising-expectations-​2014-AARP-ppi-ltc.pdf
.

Community support structures
Atul Gawande provides a frank and in-depth discussion of the issues involved in aging and the end of life, offering options that maximize well-being. See Atul Gawande,
Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End
(London: Profile Books, 2014).

Legal protections
In the United Kingdom, the Part-Time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000 “prohibit an employer treating part-time workers less favourably in their contractual terms and conditions than comparable full-time workers, unless different treatment can be justified on objective grounds.” If a part-time worker believes she has been treated unlawfully, she can file a complaint with an Employment Tribunal. See FindLaw UK,
findlaw.co.uk/​law/​employment/​discrimination/​500293.html
.

In Ireland, the Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act of 2001 ensures that a part-time employee cannot be treated less favorably than a comparable full-time employee regarding conditions of employment. Complaints can be heard by a rights commissioner. See Citizens Information Board, Public Service Information, Ireland,
citizensinformation.ie/​en/​employment/​types_of_employment/​employment_rights_of_part_​time_workers.html
.

In the United States, H.R.675—the Part-Time Worker Bill of Rights Act—was introduced in 2013 by Representative Janice D. Schakowsky. The bill would have corrected an unintended consequence of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that gives employers an incentive to drop healthcare coverage for part-time workers. That bill was not enacted. See
congress.gov/​bill/113th-congress/​house-bill/675
.

However, some states and cities are beginning to take action on their own. California and Connecticut require sick leave for part-time workers. Washington, D.C.; Seattle, Washington; Portland, Oregon; New York, New York; and Jersey City, New Jersey, have
also passed legislation. See Reid Wilson, “California on Brink of Requiring Paid Sick Days for Part-Time Workers,”
Washington Post
, September 2, 2014,
washingtonpost.com/​blogs/​govbeat/​wp/2014/09/02/​california-on-​brink-of-requiring-paid-sick-​days-for-part-time-workers
.

Better enforcement
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (Pub. L. 90-202) (ADEA), prohibits employment discrimination against persons forty years of age or older. The law “forbids discrimination when it comes to any aspect of employment, including hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoff, training, fringe benefits, and any other term or condition of employment.” See “Age Discrimination,” U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission,
eeoc.gov/​laws/​statutes/​adea.cfm
.

In addition, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975 prohibits discrimination on the basis of age in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance; and Section 188 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) prohibits discrimination against applicants, employees, and participants in WIA Title I financially assisted programs and activities on the basis of age. See “Age Discrimination,” U.S. Department of Labor,
dol.gov/​dol/​topic/​discrimination/​agedisc.htm
.