[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 156 (Sunday, September 28, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2097-E2098]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     NATIONAL WORK AND FAMILY MONTH

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CAROLYN McCARTHY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 26, 2008

  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Madam Speaker, over the past several 
decades, employers, human resource professionals, policymakers, and 
everyone who works have come to understand the importance of supporting 
the often competing demands of work, home, and community. Support for 
the work-life juggling act has expanded to cover the predictable life 
events that occur throughout a career.
  According to recent data and studies, balancing work and family is 
increasingly important to the strength of America's businesses today; 
85 percent of United States wage and salaried workers have immediate, 
day-to-day family responsibilities outside of their jobs.
  According to 2007 report by WorldatWork titled ``Attraction and 
Retention: The Impact and Prevalence of Work-life and Benefit 
Programs'', the quality of workers' jobs and the supportiveness of 
their workplaces are key predictors of job productivity, job 
satisfaction, commitment to employers, and retention.
  Given the current economic crisis that is squeezing the family budget 
at a rate unprecedented since the Great Depression, from the escalating 
price of such basics as gasoline and food, at the same time housing 
values are declining, now more than ever it is essential to give 
working families some relief. Time is the new currency and has become 
as valuable a benefit as money. Research shows that workplace 
flexibility is the most highly prized response that employers can 
provide to 21st century workplace realities.
  Workplace flexibility is not a trivial pursuit; it is a business 
imperative today. Corporations that engage in these family-supportive 
practices have earned 2-3 times the stock values, and creating a 
collegial, flexible work environment has been shown empirically to 
create a minimum of 9 percent of shareholder value.
  No one is a pioneer; the path to flexibility is well-traveled, and 
best practices abound in all sectors--public as well as private. Many 
businesses are doing an exemplary job in this area already. H. Res. 
1440 recognizes that

[[Page E2098]]

the goal of National Work and Family Month is to encourage all 
employers to pause once a year in October, take stock of the progress 
that has been made to creating great places to work, and move the bar 
up one notch, thus setting a new goal for the year to come. This is the 
way progress is accomplished, one step at a time. Today we recognize 
the importance of setting aside this time.

                          ____________________