MomsRising sets a very high goal for itself. The self-described online and on the-ground grassroots organization, which claims more than a million followers nationwide and more than 10,000 in the District, is working “to achieve economic security for all families in the United States.”
The organization believes that in these tough times, employment justice needs to be a top issue. Its goal is to get other cities to follow in D.C.’s footsteps and pass laws to regulate sick days.
Two years ago, the District passed its landmark Accrued Sick and Safe Leave Act, which sets a minimum number of paid sick days for all employees in the city.
The act requires all employers to provide paid sick leave to eligible employees working in the District for absences related to physical or mental illness, preventive medical care or family care, and for absences associated with domestic violence or sexual abuse. The act also specifies exactly how many days of paid sick leave a year employers of different sizes must allow employees, ranging from a minimum of seven days for an employer with 100 or more employees, to three days for an employer with 24 or fewer. Leave is proportional for part-time employees.
MomsRising Executive Director Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner applauds the act as a big deal, “a great step in the right direction,” and a terrific example of employment justice for other cities. As she stated, 160 countries have a minimum amount of required paid sick days, and the United States isn’t one of them. Sick days, it seems, are a rare commodity, she says, especially among the working poor. Eighty percent of low-wage workers do not get any paid sick days, according to MomsRising.
Yet some employers have embraced the Accrued Sick and Safe Leave Act. Teaism, a local D.C. chain that serves specialty teas and Asian food, has been a strong supporter of the act since the very beginning.
To reward Teaism for its support and to encourage other employers to follow suit, MomsRising, along with organizations such as the DC Employment Justice Center, Restaurant Opportunities Center of DC, and DC Jobs with Justice, organized a Carrotmob of Teaism’s Penn Quarter location on November 13.
A Carrotmob is a mob of consumers who join together to reward a business by purchasing that business’s goods or services, thereby showing support for the business’s practices and policies.
During the event, MomsRising presented owners Michelle Brown and Linda Neumann, with a Super Hero Award reading: “MomsRising Super Hero Award presented to Teaism in recognition of Teaism’s super hero and socially responsible support of extending paid sick days to all employees.” A spokeswoman for Teaism said she was not authorized to comment.
“We were delighted to show our support for Teaism,” said Rowe-Finkbeiner. “Carrotmobs are fun.” She said that events like this can be a nice alternative to legislative action that occupies much of MomsRising’s time.
In addition to events such as this, MomsRising has been taking other steps to promote employment justice. As Rowe–Finkbeiner calls it, “putting a human face on the statistics.”
The organization has been collecting both positive and negative stories from workers about their experiences with paid sick days (or a lack thereof). These stories are then delivered to Congress and state legislatures in an effort to persuade them to support employment justice.
“There are people who have lost their job because of a stomach virus,” said Rowe–Finkbeiner. “Everybody gets sick and needs time off.”
