Group items tagged

Maternal Employment and Nonmaternal Care During the Early Years 1. URL: org http://www.epi.org/publication/briefingpapers_124/ Economic Policy Institute - www.epi.org---- Working mothers in a double bind: Working moms, minorities have the most rigid schedules, and are paid less for the sacrifice By Elaine McCrate | May 1, 2002 By Elaine McCrate | May 1, 2002 2. Intended Audience: Low, working and middle class income workers, graduate and post-graduate students and working women of all ethnic classes. 3. Website overview: The economic policy institute is a think tank as it's name suggests and it conducts research and engages in the following areas: non-profit, non-partisan issues. It was officially established in 1986 and it's intent was to propose solutions that will defend and ameliorate the minimal pay and harsh working condition of the low and middle class worker. The EPI serves as the voice of the working class people. The sole purpose of Economic Policy institute is to bring forth awareness concerning economic policies and how these economic policies are benefiting the needs of low, working and middle-income workers. One of EPI beliefs is that every working person, regardless of wage status deserves equality in terms of fair pay and working conditions. Their method of impregnating the public perception with accurate and timely knowledge according to the EPI website is by "producing a plethora of research papers and policy analyses; sponsors conferences and seminars; briefs policy makers at all levels of government; provides technical support to national, state, and local constituency and advocacy organizations; testifies before national, state, and local legislatures; and provides information and background to the media." According to the website, the EPI values are: EPI Values * Helping Working People Economic policy should focus on improving conditions for working people. * Truth and Accuracy Matter EPI research should be honest and rigorous. *

Workplace Flexibility 2010 is a website that deems itself a public policy initiative that seeks to implement and recommend policies which promote and enforce workplace flexibility. The website is very informative of their components which include flexible work arrangements, time off, and career flexibility. The website is also informative to the extent that is has a lengthy list of policies both federal and state that foster workplace flexibility. The website seeks to make flexible workplaces a part of American culture. The site is very credible and is implemented by Georgetown Law. The founder Patricia Kempethorne is the executive director of the Twiga Foundation. I feel the site is geared towards employers and the general public for information and support. I am clued to this because the site offers information which will not only educate employees but also employers and seeks support from all individuals. Also, many of the staff are affiliated with Georgetown and can be emailed accordingly. This website falls hand in hand with many of the information we have learned this semester about family friendly policies in the workplace. We have found through many of our readings the importance of family friendly policies and how they can affect employees. Providing a proper work family relationship is not only helpful to the employee but the employer in that it will help provide quality staff who are well trained and retainable. These employees will also be able to handle the responsibilities of their work lives and home lives simultaneously.

This website offered a lot of information to not only employees and employers but the public in general. I completely agree with your targeted audience but the information on-hand is important for everyone to know. I think everyone should always stay informed. Also, the website, or the material in it, is actually part of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation's National Iniative on Workplace Flexibility. If I remember correctly, there was a reading assignment that we had that was also part of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Anyway great post and great website!

This website clearly states their mission. They attempt to help shape public policy to help women's lives in a positive manner.They offer different sections about informing a reader about programs, publications, news updates and ways to support the website and cause. The website seems to mostly geared towards women. It is attempting to empower them. The website seems to be credible because of the mission of the Board of Directors. To attempt to change public policy, there has to be a level of professionalism and credibility. The staff and board of directors for this website include extremely educated individuals. The newsletter provided by CWPS has articles written by accredited authors. The newsletter provides information about how CWPS has helped change and mold different public policies that have come about. I will say that there is a bit of a bias in the writing on the website. Although, they cover different issues, they attempt to make it seem like their efforts are never good enough and nothing is getting done in their favor. This does take away from credibility a bit. The information provided does come from credible sources. They have information from the U.S Census and from their own findings. The CWPS has a social agenda to help improve women's lives not just in America but also around the world. I feel that this is a good website.They do a great job of calling people to action. CWPS does a wonderful job of presenting facts about the state of women around the world. They make it known that there is a problem and it must be improved.

The Company That Cares website is an effective website that focuses on making companies socially responsible. The website offers three action programs, AIM High, Invisible Differences, and CareDays all stemmed towards developing children for college, helping those with disabilities gain skills to enter the workforce and address other significant issues throughout society. The not-for-profit company is founded by Marci Koblenz, Founder and President, Sandra Cunningham, Founder, Mary Ellen Gornick, Founder. The website also educates employers about the many issues that may be faced by their employees, especially those living in poverty. This website ties into our involvement in MGT 444 in many ways. The website makes employers aware of the many issues that employees face outside of the workplace which can have a direct impact on an employees work life. I feel that websites such as this one make it easier for employers to implement family friendly policies and be more open to the societal issues many employees face. Those companies involved with Companies That Care will more likely handle employees with conflicts between work and home life in more effective ways and the website is funded by companies that care. The companies that help fund this website have definately made a step at understanding the many issues employees face and will be more likely to deal with these issues in a way that will retain workers in the face of some family based conflicts. The Companies That Care's website provides a code of conduct that has ten characteristics. One of the characteristics is to encourage work/life balance and another characteristic is to enable the well-being of individuals and their families through compensation, benefits, policies and practices. Due to these and other of the ten characteristic codes of conduct I think it is clear that Companies That Care encourages family friendly policies in the workplace and more websites such as this should exist.

From Companies that Care: "Center for Companies That Care is a national, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to enhancing the well-being of employees and communities by educating and inspiring employers to practice employer engagement and integrate the 10 Characteristics of a Socially Responsible Employer into their daily business practices. Our Community of Caring is making a difference in communities and workplaces nationwide through community-building initiatives and education about how to be a company that cares." The intended audiences of Companies that Care are employers and managers. Companies that Care seeks to resolve many of the work, life, time, community, and family balance issues identified in our studies this semester. They identify the 10 Characteristics of Socially Responsible Employers and also have created an Honor Roll to recognize companies that meet their standards of social responsibility. The website openly identifies the corporate connections of their board members and sponsors. This could lead the organization to be biased towards their sponsor when awarding their Honor Roll recognition, but it could also be an indication that these companies value the advocacy of social responsibility in the corporate world.

I feel that the website is biased towards dealings with companies that care. The corporate connections they hold are what I feel demonstrate support by other companies that value the family friendly policies this website endorses. I feel the website is credible by being able to pull the support of other organizations, seemingly those involved in healthcare are the websites main supporters, but the few supporters they have underline the fact that the organization is having it's effects on businesses who hold similar values. I expect this website to grow and obtain more support as they seem very genuine.

The Center for the Child Care Workforce focused their attention on a few categories in tabs on their page. These topics included; a home tab, about us, research and resources, take action, public policy, and news to use. The first thing one would notice on this website is their mission, "to improve the quality of early care and education for all children by promoting policy, research and organizing that ensure the early care and education workforce is well-educated, receives better compensation and a voice in their workplace." (Center for the Child Care Workforce). The point is to help others acknowledge that children need proper care, and how child care providers can do this effectively. The intended audience would be grown adults, specifically adults whom are involved in young children lives. The Center for the Child Care Workforce discusses how this group, "literally hold the future in [their] hands." (Center for the Child Care Workforce). What they are trying to say, is that it is the older generation, which needs to teach and provide education for the young generation, so they are knowledgeable. This website is good about providing all the information needed to understand their point and how they are trying to fulfill it. I believe that this site is credible. They provide many sources of where their focus came from. The Center for the Child Care Workforce, mentioned the Worthy Wage Campaign, stated as, "a grassroots effort led by child care teachers, family child care providers, school age teaching staff, Head Start teachers and others who work directly with children to mobilize to improve the compensation and work environments for the early care and education workforce." (Center for the Child Care Workforce). Many others points included, facts about "high-quality early childhood education programs results [and what] high-quality early childhood programs include." (Center for the Child Care Workforce). There are pdf files of

The name of the website I reviewed is Momsrising.org, and the URL is http://www.momsrising.org/. This is a non-profit organization 501(c)(4), which means contributions are not tax deductible. I was unable to pinpoint authorship to one person. The 'about us' section simply states that this is a group of people (mostly mothers) who have come together to address issues related to motherhood and family. Specifically, the group examines issues such as maternity and paternity leave, open flexible work, toxics, health care, early care and education, fair wages and paid sick time. The organization's ideas stem from a book titled, The Motherhood Manifesto, authored by Joan Blades and Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner. It just so happens that Rowe-Finkbeiner is also the Executive Director of Momsrising.org. Most of the articles and other stories on their site do not give credit to any author. The only exception would be the Blog page, but even then, it is sometimes just a first name. This organization seems to me to be basically like a PAC, working to change public policies in order to make the workplace more family friendly. The targeted audience would be working mothers and fathers, but it seems there are many more women involved than men. The website addresses many issues that are important regarding work, family, and community. Many workers struggle with finding affordable childcare and this site has a page directly related to promoting early education and childcare for all. They also promote family-friendly policies such as flex-time, job sharing, and telecommuting. I think this website provides some useful information, but I also believe that most of it is biased and subjective. For example, one of the issues they address is healthcare for all. Included is a link to a question and answer session with Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius. She touts that the

And, here's the rest.... She touts that the new health care reform is designed to put you (us) in charge of our own health, giving us more options, etc. However, no one really knows what is going to happen when this takes effect. There are countless other arguments that support the ideas that people will have less access to care, important medical decisions will be made by some 'board', and the number of qualified doctors will quickly decline. Of course, Momsrising.org only presents the side of the story they want you to believe with regards to the health care reform law. Overall, I would consider the website credible because this group does exist. News articles from around the country support their existence. I noticed they had a "Donate" button that takes you to a page where you can make a monetary donation; however, they don't give a 'breakdown' of where this money goes. For example, what percentage goes to overhead, etc? The site appears to be fairly current, as it should be since it is addressing issues that are being faced today. The copyright date only gives the year 2011, but the "In The News" page contains several links to recent press releases. The site is well designed and consistent in layout. I was unable to find a 'help' screen or a site map.

Women Employed is a non-profit advocacy organization that is working to improve the conditions of working women, especially in the areas of economic and educational opportunities. Women Employed has fought against pregnancy discrimination and sexual harassment, while supporting better work/family benefits for working women. The website discusses major workplace issues affecting women, provides likes to resources regarding workplace rights, and seeks to be a vehicle for networking between other women. Visitors can also donate to the group and become a member via the website, as well. The intended audience for this site is clearly working women who are struggling in the employment area, whether in terms of compensation or in the area of work/family benefits. Someone who wanted to improve their career options or outlook would benefit from this website. Additionally, those who simply want to know what their rights in the workplace are would also learn some beneficial information. Information on workplace rights and why "work isn't working" is ready available and easily accessible to the general public. The website highlights several facts, including the fact that there are 30 million low-wage workers (defined as workers earning less than $8.70/hr or $16,704 per year). Of those 30 million, 60% are women. According to this site, only a third of workers have paid sick time to take care of their children and over three-fourths of the lowest paid workers have NO paid sick time at all. I find this website pretty credible. They seem to be basing their facts upon government statistics, including those from the Labor Department. Though visitors are asked to donate to the group's efforts, no donation is required to access the information or resources. The website's initiatives are also very positive and very needed ones: promoting equal pay for equal work, promoting work/family balance, strengthening Affirmative Action policies (which include women), and en

Website Overview: Flex+Strategy Group's website is extremely basic and clean, showing employers that they don't want to waste their time or dazzle them with showiness. The website is easy to find one's way around and is laid out in more of a site map fashion than anything else and it has very few embedded photos. This appearance says, "we don't need smoke and mirrors, we get you results." They present their mission statement, in a dissected way on one page, that quickly describes benefits which specifically cater to the employer as opposed to the employee, which I find very smart. They include links to a few actual business plans they created and implemented for their clientele, which includes huge corporations that everyone's heard of such as Quaker/Tropicana and the U.S Navy. Who wouldn't want to participate in a plan that such successful companies have implemented? To the left as you click through the website are non-invasive testimonials super imposed over the words "transform, inspire, move." There are tabs along the top to help you drill down, more specifically, to other areas or, depending on who you are, portals that apply to just you. Intended Audience: The intended audience is obviously employers who may be curious about flexing their staff but most likely have a somewhat closed-minded approach because the website is very much trying to sell whoever is looking at it on the idea and the fact that they need a consulting service to accomplish the task. Relationship to work, family, community class: A large portion of our class was spent discussing the points at which families and work intersect and how they are usually an inverse property to one another and how more time spent at one detracts from the other in a negative way. We've read about how our society is affected when employers are not understanding about people needing to be home for their children at certain times and in certain instances and also to care for

This was a great website Becky! The Credit Union that I work for recently acquired a Credit Union in California that offered a great deal of flexibility in the workplace. They offered babies in the workplace, flexible schedules, and people to work out of their homes to save them an hour commute. The employees really appreciated that their employer put their needs first.

This is an OUTSTANDING website and I am so glad you shared this with us. I really particularly liked the "tips" for individuals. It is so true when they say small changes in your "fit" can make a difference and that you often don't want to work less, but differently. Even small changes can make a big difference. I'm reminded of the "Amerco" employees we read about who, even with flexible workplace options, still ended up working long hours. Even tweaking things a bit can make a big difference. I remember when I once had to start work at 7:15 a.m. My daughter was experiencing a lot of challenges and, due to me having to get to work so early, she often had to make it to school on her own. Because of this, she was late to class many times due to falling back asleep after I woke her up. When I dropped her off at school, she would have to wait outside (in the freezing cold during winter) for over half an hour before someone could let her inside the building. My work start time really caused me a lot of anxiety regarding my daughter... either worrying that she was alone in the cold or sleeping in bed when she should have been on her way to school. I asked my boss if I could change my start time to 7:30 and stay 15 minutes later. She agreed and things worked out to where I was able to drop my daughter off at the bus stop where many of her classmates also waited for the bus. That greatly eased my stress level and anxiety over my daughter's safety. Just something as simple as starting work 15 minutes later worked wonders.

Center for Women and Work is a part of Rutgers School of Management and Labor relations and part of the Institute for Womens Leadership (IWL). Founded in 1993 by Proffessor Sue Cobble, the Center for Women and Work was created to study public policies, do research, and provide education to women. Particularly interesting about this website is its far reaching goals to help low-income working women and to extend it's efforts to help proffessional women such as lawyers and others in the corporate atmosphere deal with issues of obtaining and retaining employment. Also, helping proffessional women achieve and retain effectiveness in their roles as leaders, The Center for Women and Work is a company which should be commended for their efforts of addressing the needs of women. The center consist of two workforce development programs, one which aids the state, county and local governments of New jersey with implementing technology based programs, such as, online learning, for non-college grads. The second program is developing web applications that seek to teach literacy and work readiness skills. The center also offers a nationally-recognized program that provides research on gender equity and career development. Finally, the center does much research into the laws that working families need to balance their work and home lives. These laws could include paid time off, and flexible schedules. The intended audience for this website is very broad, although it seems to be geared towards the needs of working women. The website is assessible to the general public and can be intended for companies, and politicians with a desire to increase the effectiveness of women in the workplace. The website also ask the general public as well as businesses for support and list information needed to make donations to keep the company thriving. This website is definately credible as it stems from its connection with Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations in

Also, this website, is biased towards the positive interactions of women in the workforce. The website is specifically designed to assess the needs of women on a ground roots level by providing education and training. Also, by being involved in research and politics and trying to develop research that will influence legislation the benefits women in the workforce.

I thought the website was very informational and easy to navigate. I did a review on the national organization of women and had no idea it even existed. Seeing this site and all they do for women as well is truly amazing. The history part of Center for Women and Work really caught my attention. It said one of their main goals is to promote how and why women lead, and prepare women of all ages to lead effectively. Props to this website and a very good review!

According to 9to5's about us section their "priority campaign is to win family-friendly policies for low-wage women. In the coming year, we'll focus on expanding family and medical leave benefits." While they appear to be making honest attempts towards this end they do not appear to be making actual progress. In their mission and history section they take credit for the Civil Rights Act of 1991. They don't explain how they are connected to this legislation, but I can't imagine that they were a key party in its implementation, as they don't offer any supporting facts. Their intended audience is low wage working women, who ironically don't necessarily or often work a nine to five schedule. At its core 9to5 seems to be a group of well-meaning women who want to support low wage earners when they need legal assistance. Besides their local, grassroots advocacy I believe their most effective resource is actually the legal assistance hotline they offer.

I agree this website sounds like they've taken quite a few liberties. Giving themselves credit for the Civil Rights Act of 1991 without any facts to back themselves up seems very bold. There is a good though behind the site, just not well executed.

It is hard to not support an organizaiton when 44 million American workers do not get paid sick days from their employers. In tough economic times, many workers simply cannot afford to stay out of work until they get well. Some employers will even fire workers for taking time off when they or their kids are sick, which is i believe flat wrong.