[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 154 (Tuesday, November 30, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H7709-H7711]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SUPPORTING NATIONAL WORK AND FAMILY MONTH
Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to
the resolution (H. Res. 1598) expressing support for the designation of
the month of October as National Work and Family Month.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 1598
Whereas, according to a report entitled ``Attraction and
Retention'' published by an organization called WorldatWork,
the quality of workers' jobs and the supportiveness of their
workplaces are key predictors of job productivity, job
satisfaction, commitment to employers, and retention;
Whereas, according to a 2008 report by the Families and
Work Institute entitled National Study of the Changing
Workforce, employees with a high level of work-life
integration are, compared to employees with moderate or low
levels of work-life integration, more highly engaged and less
likely to look for a new job in the next year, and also enjoy
better overall health, better mental health, and lower levels
of stress;
Whereas, according to a 2004 report entitled ``Overwork in
America'', employees who are able to effectively balance
family and work responsibilities are less likely to report
making mistakes or feeling resentment toward employers and
coworkers;
Whereas, according to the Best Places to Work in the
Federal Government rankings released by the Partnership for
Public Service and American University's Institute for the
Study of Public Policy Implementation, work-life balance and
a family-friendly culture are among the key drivers of
employee engagement and satisfaction in the Federal
workforce;
Whereas finding a good work-life balance is important for
workers in multiple generations, as indicated by a 2009
survey entitled ``Great Expectations! What Students Want in
an Employer and How Federal Agencies Can Deliver It'', which
found that attaining a healthy work-life balance was an
important career goal of 66 percent of respondents, and a
2008 study entitled ``A Golden Opportunity'', which found
that workers between the ages of 50 and 65 are a strong
source of experienced talent for the Federal workforce and
that nearly 50 percent of these potential workers find
flexible work schedules ``extremely appealing'';
Whereas, according to research by the Radcliffe Public
Policy Center in 2000, men in their 20s and 30s and women in
their 20s, 30s, and 40s identified as the most important job
characteristic a work schedule that allows them to spend time
with their families;
Whereas, according to research by the Sloan Center for
Aging and Work, a majority of workers age 53 and older
attribute their success as an employee, by a great or
moderate extent, to job flexibility, and also report that, to
a great extent, job flexibility contributes to an overall
higher quality of life;
Whereas employees who are able to effectively balance
family and work responsibilities feel healthier and more
successful in their relationships with their spouses,
children, and friends;
Whereas 85 percent of United States wage and salaried
workers have immediate, day-to-day family responsibilities
outside of their jobs;
Whereas, according to the 2006 American Community Survey,
47 percent of wage and salaried workers are parents with
children under the age of 18 who live with them at least
half-time;
Whereas job flexibility often allows parents to be more
involved in their children's lives, and parental involvement
is associated with higher child achievement in language and
mathematics, improved behavior, greater academic persistence,
and lower dropout rates;
Whereas a 2000 study entitled Urban Working Families
revealed that a lack of job flexibility for parents
negatively affects child health by preventing children from
making needed doctors' appointments and receiving adequate
early care, which makes illnesses more severe and prolonged;
Whereas, from 2001 to early 2008, 1,700,000 active duty
troops have served in Iraq and 600,000 members of the
National Guard and Reserve (133,000 on more than one tour)
have been called up to serve, creating a need for policies
and programs to help military families adjust to the
realities that come with having a family member in the
military;
Whereas, according to a Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) report, breastfeeding is the most beneficial
form of infant nutrition, and the greater the duration of
breastfeeding, the lower the odds of pediatric overweight and
obesity;
Whereas, according to the CDC, less than half of mothers
who work full time exclusively breastfeed their newborns;
Whereas, according to the CDC, employer policies that
encourage breastfeeding benefit individual families as well
as employers by improving productivity and staff loyalty,
enhancing the employer's public image, and reducing
absenteeism, health care costs, and employee turnover;
Whereas studies show that a third of children and
adolescents in the United States are obese or overweight and
that healthy lifestyle habits, including healthy eating and
physical activity, can lower the risk of becoming obese and
developing related diseases;
Whereas studies report that family rituals, such as sitting
down to dinner together and sharing activities on weekends
and holidays, positively influence children's health and
development, and that children who ate dinner with their
family every day consumed nearly a full serving more of
fruits and vegetables per day than those who never ate family
dinners or only did so occasionally;
Whereas unpaid family caregivers will likely continue to be
the largest source of long-term care for elderly United
States citizens, and the Department of Health and Human
Services estimates the number of such caregivers to reach
37,000,000 by 2050, an increase of 85 percent from 2000, as
baby boomers reach retirement age in record numbers; and
Whereas the month of October would be an appropriate month
to designate as National Work and Family Month: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) supports the designation of National Work and Family
Month;
(2) recognizes the importance of balancing work and family
to job productivity and healthy families;
(3) recognizes that an important job characteristic is a
work schedule that allows employees to spend time with
families;
(4) supports the goals and ideals of National Work and
Family Month, and urges public officials, employers,
employees, and the general public to work together to achieve
more balance between work and family; and
(5) requests that the President issue a proclamation
calling upon the people of the United States to observe
National Work and Family Month with appropriate ceremonies
and activities.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
California (Ms. Woolsey) and the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California.
General Leave
Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I request 5 legislative days during which
Members may revise and extend and insert extraneous material on House
Resolution 1598 into the Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from California?
There was no objection.
Ms. WOOLSEY. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 1598, which
expresses support for designating October as National Work and Family
Month.
Over the past 40 years, the family dynamic has changed. Women
comprise nearly half of the United States workforce. For most working
women, their responsibilities do not cease at the end of the workday
but continue on at home as most women serve as their families' primary
caregivers. Beyond caring for their own families, working women often
take on additional caregiver responsibilities by caring for their
parents and/or their spouses' parents.
But it isn't just women who face the challenge of balancing work and
family, Mr. Speaker. More than ever before, men have taken on a greater
share of family responsibilities in addition to their workplace duties.
With working families taking on extra hours to make ends meet during
these tough economic times, the need for a work-life balance is more
crucial than ever. Employers who afford their employees with policies
that help to balance work and family reap substantial benefits, ranging
from improving an employer's bottom line, increasing retention rates,
decreasing absenteeism, and improving productivity and morale.
A 2008 report by the Families and Work Institute found that workers
who are able to balance work and family
[[Page H7710]]
are more highly engaged in their work and less likely to look for jobs
in the next year. They also enjoy better overall health, better mental
health, and lower levels of stress.
Finding a good balance between work and family is important to most
people. A 2009 survey of students found that two-thirds of respondents
cited a healthy work-life balance was an important career goal. In
addition, Mr. Speaker, research by the Radcliff Public Policy Center
found that women in their 20s, 30s and 40s and men in their 20s and 30s
identified the most important job characteristic to be a job schedule
that allows them to spend time with their families.
According to research by the Sloan Center on Aging & Work, a majority
of workers aged 53 and older attribute their success as employees to
job flexibility, which contributes to an overall higher quality of
life. Job flexibility often allows parents to be more involved in their
children's lives, and parental involvement is associated with higher
child achievement in language and mathematics, improved behavior,
greater academic persistence, and lower dropout rates.
Families with working parents face many challenges when it comes to
balancing family time with working hard to provide for their families,
and it is so important that we recognize this every day, because it is
such a challenge; but it is equally important to recognize that the
substantial benefits accorded and afforded to parents, children and
employers when workers have access to policies of support lead to a
much healthier work-life balance.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROE of Tennessee. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 1598,
expressing support for the designation of the month of October as
National Work and Family Month.
Establishing a healthy balance between work and family obligations is
something that most workers--women and men both--struggle with at some
point in their careers. Studies have shown that employees who are able
to effectively balance family and work responsibilities are less likely
to report making mistakes or to feel resentment toward employers or
coworkers.
Eighty-five percent of United States wage and salaried workers have
immediate, day-to-day family responsibilities outside of their jobs.
Workplace flexibility often allows parents to be more involved in their
children's lives. Parental involvement is associated with children's
higher achievement in language and mathematics, improved behavior,
greater academic persistence, and lower dropout rates.
Today, with this resolution, we support the designation of the month
of October as National Work and Family Month. Through this designation,
we recognize the importance of balancing work and family, and we urge
public officials, employers, employees, and the general public to work
together to achieve more balance between work and family.
With that, I stand in support of this resolution, and I ask my
colleagues for their support.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the
author of this resolution, the gentlewoman from New York, Congresswoman
McCarthy.
Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. I want to thank Ms. Woolsey, who is my
colleague on the Education Committee and who has been working with me
on this also, and I want to thank Mr. Roe from Tennessee for bringing
this up.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 1598, a
resolution supporting the recognition of National Work and Family
Month. I think my colleague, Ms. Woolsey, really spoke about the
essence of the bill, so I am going to speak a little bit shorter on
this.
I want to thank Representative Platts for introducing this resolution
with me, and I want to thank Chairman Miller and Ranking Member Kline
for bringing this resolution to the floor today under suspension.
This resolution highlights the need to focus on a healthy work and
family balance. Study after study has shown that finding the right
balance between work responsibilities and family obligations is one of
the most important things for all of our workers. Workers who have a
better work-family balance have better overall health and have less
stress. Children also benefit from having their parents available more
often. Employees who are able to spend enough time with their families
are happier at work and are more productive than those employees who do
not have enough time to spend with their families. Achieving a work-
family balance is good for all employers, employees and their families.
This resolution just basically asks all Americans to consider how to
achieve a healthier work-family balance, to increase the quality of
life for our employees and their families and improve productivity for
our employers.
Thank you, and I urge the passage of this resolution.
{time} 1720
Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I will simply say that one of the
great challenges in my life was to balance a professional practice with
my family. And I will say also that you will never regret 1 minute that
you spend with your children or your grandchildren. So I would
encourage support of this.
I thank the gentlelady from California and New York for speaking
about this. I think one of the most important issues we have today is
time with our families. As our families break down, our children are
left alone so much. I would encourage everyone, especially at this time
of year, to spend as much time with their families as they can. It will
be the best investment you have ever made.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, most children are lucky if they have a two-
parent family these days, but if they even have one parent or two
parents, both of those parents are in the workforce. They work long
hours, they commute long distances to put food on the table, and quite
often they are not able to sit at that table and share that food with
their families because their work-life balance is so unbalanced. So
families with working parents face many, many challenges when it comes
to balancing family time with working to provide for their families,
and it's important that we recognize this as an everyday challenge.
It is equally important to recognize that substantial benefits are
afforded to parents, children, and employers when workers have access
to policies that support a healthy work-life balance. So I want to
thank Representative McCarthy for sponsoring this important resolution,
and I thank Congressman Roe for being part of this with us. I encourage
my colleagues to join me today in support of House Resolution 1598.
Mrs. McMORRIS RODGERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support for H.
Res. 1598, a resolution expressing support for designating October as
National Work and Family Month.
As the mom of a three year old and another one on the way, I know
first hand the struggles parents face. One of the most challenging
aspects is how to balance work and family responsibilities--knowing
that our attention to both is critical. We know that parental
involvement plays a direct role in our children's growth and
development. We know that providing direct care to our aging parents
may sometimes be the best and/or only option. Yet, we also know that
our employers are looking at ways to stay in business and improve their
bottom lines.
H. Res. 1598 highlights the benefits of balancing work and family
needs and recognizes the efforts that employers have undertaken.
Statistics demonstrate that a growing number of employers recognize
the benefits of providing flexibility in the workplace and are
successfully meeting the needs of their employees. Employers understand
that having programs in place to address work-life balance issues are
effective and necessary and are to the companies' benefit.
I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) that the House suspend the
rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 1598.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground
that a
[[Page H7711]]
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not
present.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.
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