For Main Street businesses, healthy families are part of our bottom line. Most of us will need to provide care at some point in our life either to welcome a new baby, care for an aging parent, or for our own unexpected health crisis like cancer. That shouldn’t be a financial struggle for any of us, whether we’re a business owner or an employee. Our businesses benefit when employees can take time to care for their families and return ready to work. Paid leave helps reduce turnover and boost employee morale and loyalty, increasing productivity and cost savings for our small businesses. Few people have access to paid leave, though. Fixing this is a key part of helping Main Street and making our country more equal. The racial wealth gap means employees and business owners of color have less financial cushion for taking time off, but they also have more limited access to paid leave. And, with most caregiving still falling to women, paid leave is an important gender equity measure for business owners and employees alike. Main Street businesses can’t go it alone. Large corporations wield the market power to offer paid family and medical leave. We don’t. That’s why we support the creation of a national paid family and medical leave social insurance program, to help small businesses and families in emergencies and times of need and that:
It’s time for Congress to give Main Street businesses a fighting chance. Lawmakers in six states and the District of Columbia have adopted paid family and medical leave programs -- with strong results for Main Street businesses and their employees. We want Congress to build on that success with a national program. We support The Family And Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act (H. 1185/S. 463), a paid family and medical leave program that works for Main Street. Big corporations win and small businesses struggle when lawmakers fail to act. Let’s level the playing field for small businesses, strengthen economic opportunities for our families and communities, and promote greater racial and gender equity by passing strong paid family and medical leave legislation.
Please add my name to the list of small business owners from across the country that have signed this letter to urge our Members of Congress to support The Family And Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act (H. 1185/S. 463), a paid family and medical leave program that works for Main Street.
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