Yael Smiley and Kimberly Perry: Family, medical and caregiving leave are essential for all of us
The COVID-19 crisis reinforces the need for inclusive, accessible programs for public health and public benefits. Fortunately, the District is almost ready to launch a new program that will help.
DC’s new Universal Paid Leave Program is slated to launch July 1. As public health experts and advocates, we have been working toward this moment since 2015. In a few short months, nearly everyone who works in our city will be able to take paid time away from work to care for themselves and their loved ones when serious illness or injury strikes.
Ideally, we would have had a program like this in place long ago. The United States is virtually alone in the developed world in failing to provide guaranteed health care and adequate support for people with debilitating illnesses or injuries. The large majority of Americans wish we did have these kinds of programs, and the vast majority of District residents and voters support the Universal Paid Leave program.
But incredibly, the Washington Business Journal reported last month that the DC Chamber of Commerce and the Federal City Council — two lobbying groups representing the area’s wealthiest developers and biggest business owners — are pushing the city to delay the program, stop collecting the taxes that fund it, and maybe even spend the money that’s already been collected on something else. They claim we can’t afford paid leave. But the truth is that they’re trying to use this crisis to cut a popular program that everyone needs.
We’re all vulnerable in this pandemic — but not equally. While African Americans account for 46% of the District’s population, 77% of those who have died from coronavirus in DC are Black. People who work in grocery stores, pharmacies, cleaning services and caregiving are at an exponentially higher risk for exposure, as are their families. The District is home to more than 47,000 front-line workers, most of whom are women and people of color. Yet our essential workers are also chronically underpaid and denied lifesaving benefits like paid leave. This is not new: Black and brown communities have historically been denied decent pay, benefits and health care. As a result, our residents of color have more chronic conditions, get sicker and die at disproportionate rates from many illnesses, including COVID-19.
We won’t undo generations of inequity with one program, but paid leave is a critical step forward. And yet, the Chamber of Commerce, Federal City Council and other local big-business leaders have spent millions lobbying against the Universal Paid Leave program through years of public debate. Even after the policy became law, they continued demanding revisions and delays. Meanwhile, small-business owners, advocates, public health and early childhood experts, and working people across the city pleaded for a common-sense program that could help all of us stay healthy and financially stable.
The program helps businesses stay afloat, too: Its only cost to employers is a 0.62% payroll tax. That’s about $6 a week to cover an employee who earns $50,000 a year. Businesses would spend far more for a private insurance program, or to pay employees out of pocket during leave. The citywide program means that employers, especially small businesses, can plan ahead and incur no additional costs when their staff need time away from the job. And yet the big-business owners and developers claim the economic devastation of the pandemic means we should delay this program.
The District does face real financial challenges and is facing them head-on. However, Mayor Bowser was right to recognize it would be shortsighted and dangerous to balance our budget by cutting a program that helps all of us stay safe and healthy. Hundreds of people in the District have died from a terrible new disease, and across the nation millions more have been plunged into joblessness. As the city plans to reopen workplaces and businesses, it’s critical for public safety that sick people can stay home and get care.
We urge our political leaders to continue to stand with doctors, scientists and front-line workers. Don’t back down from the commitment you made to the people of our city: No one should be forced to choose between their job and their health. If anything, let’s find ways to expand programs that support small businesses, working families and vulnerable communities. At the very least, no one should debate cutting a lifeline in the middle of a pandemic.
Dr. Yael Smiley is a pediatrician who lives and works in DC. Kimberly Perry is executive director of DC Action for Children and co-chair of Under 3 DC.
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Without caregivers, there would be no one to provide care for the children, the elderly, the sick, and the disabled. Indeed, caregivers play a very important role in the lives of many people, especially those who are in need of care and assistance. They assist them with their daily activities, prepare their meals and medicines, run errands for them, give them the emotional and moral support that they need, and so on. Essentially, caregivers are the companions that make life easier and more bearable for many people.
Ultimately, no one can deny the great importance of caregivers. Their contributions play a huge role in keeping the society intact both in the personal and public levels. Without these caregivers, there would be no one left to help and support the children, the elderly, and the sick or disabled. Caregivers generally provide a different kind of emotional support that not everyone can provide completely. In essence, the importance of caregivers greatly lies in their ability to make life easier and less burdensome for many people. All of these are the ultimate reasons why caregivers deserve your gratitude. As Judith L. London has put it, “Caregivers are often the casualties, the hidden victims. No one sees the sacrifices they make” – but you, with your simplest gratitude, have the power to change this today.