EVERY PERSON
SHOULD BE THERE FOR THEIR FAMILIES IN THE MOMENTS THAT MATTER MOST
EVERY PERSON
SHOULD BE THERE FOR THEIR FAMILIES IN THE MOMENTS THAT MATTER MOST
CORPORATE ENGAGEMENT
CORPORATE ENGAGEMENT
One path to winning paid leave for more working people in the U.S. was through employer policy change. PL+US worked from inside and outside to push large companies to introduce or expand paid leave policies.
With existing advocates focused largely on public sector transformation across the federal, state, and local level, the private sector was a largely untapped source of power for paid leave. PL+US saw an opportunity to push companies to respond to growing public demand for paid leave and provided an opportunity for companies to showcase their leadership in building equitable and supportive workplaces.
Through PL+US corporate engagement work and the change it prompted, more than 8 million people gained new or expanded access to paid leave. This also fostered a national narrative around the business and economic case for paid leave, which would be critical in the public policy debate to come.
ADVOCACY AND STORYTELLING
ADVOCACY AND STORYTELLING
PL+US used advocacy and storytelling to shift public understanding about paid leave. In particular, lifting up real people with real stories about the value of paid leave was central to PL+US’ work and success.
As an organization, PL+US was focused on doing the following to advance the fight for paid leave using advocacy and storytelling:
The stories that the grassroots and grasstops advocacy – working people, business leaders, and celebrities – brought to the campaign were critical to creating the conditions (and movement) necessary for a legislative victory on paid leave.
POLITICS AND POLICY
POLITICS AND POLICY
Winning paid leave would require deep investment in political organizing, building new legislative champions, and embracing a policy that worked for all.
As a single-issue organization outside of the traditional paid leave coalition, PL+US differentiated itself by leaning into political advocacy, paid media, and a non-traditional legislative approach. PL+US had a clear view: to effectively advance federal policy, it needed to build a powerful constituency.
Working in close coordination with its partners in the paid leave coalition, in November 2021, PL+US’ political and policy work resulted in a federal paid leave proposal passing the U.S. House in the Build Back Better legislative package (a historic first), and the U.S. coming closer to final passage of a federal paid leave program than it had in the nearly 30 years since the passage of the Family & Medical Leave Act in 1993.
As of this writing in April 2022, the passage of national paid leave policy, while not moving quickly enough to meet the country’s immediate needs, looks like a political inevitability. Nationally, support across party lines remains high, the issue has greater salience in the public dialogue than ever before, state policies continue to expand and provide valuable proof points for a federal policy, and the private sector is continuing to lead in expanding workplace policies in the absence of federal policy.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND CULTURE
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND CULTURE
To win paid leave with principles and authenticity, PL+US needed to model best practices and leadership on work-life balance, self-care, and caregiving for its own staff.
This allowed PL+US to build credibility with partners and businesses in the private sector and authentically speak to policymakers on the benefits of paid leave. PL+US:
If you’d like to learn more about PL+US’s story, work, and lessons learned, please read the report “Redefining Possibilities: The Fight for Quality Paid Family and Medical Leave for Everyone.”
The report features an in-depth analysis of PL+US’s work on corporate engagement, advocacy and storytelling, and politics and policy, as well as additional insight into its organizational structure and culture, deep dives into particularly notable projects and efforts, and a vision for the road ahead for the fight for paid leave.
You can download and view a full copy of the report here.