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Big life events — whether it’s welcoming a child into the family, providing care for an aging parent, or caring for our own health — do not necessarily abide by a timeline of preparedness or convenience. Sometimes we can prepare as much as possible and still be met with an unexpected turn of events.
Without paid family leave, Michiganders could be one emergency away from losing their stability, livelihood or home. That’s why we, as leaders of a county-wide network and a state-wide public policy organization, partnered up to spread the word to Michiganders about why paid leave is so important.
We hope that others will see the power of partnerships when it comes to moving the needle on the issues they care about.
KConnect added access to paid family and medical leave to its co-created Shared Policy Agenda, the first of its kind in Kent County dedicated to improving outcomes for children and families. This agenda, developed with significant input from those most impacted by the disparities it aims to address, is aligned with the KConnect prenatal to career workplan and affirmed by the KConnect network. Our organization’s ultimate goal is to improve economic mobility and achieve thriving family income for all residents of Kent County, regardless of race, ethnicity or economic background.
The Michigan League for Public Policy has a similar goal, and working together with the support of the KConnect network behind us, we hosted our inaugural Advocacy Day at the Capitol on November 12.
We partnered with Mothering Justice for coalition and subject matter expertise and then took our experiences and knowledge to Lansing to speak with lawmakers and staffers.
And while the goal of this day was to improve awareness of paid family leave, the lesson to be learned is that by coming together, groups like ours can really make an impact.
For many people, this day in Lansing was their first exposure to advocacy. To prepare them, we worked to ensure they entered the day with as much confidence as possible. KConnect shared with people what to expect, explained how policy and advocacy are central to our work, and reviewed talking points derived from data analysis. We also created a custom guidebook for each participant, including one-pagers, individualized meeting schedules and more.
We were 21 strong, representing various sectors, including education, nonprofit, business, community, and parent voices. Everyone had a story about the necessity of paid family and medical leave, whether personal, professional or both.
That is where the real strength rests: within people and their stories.
When it came time to meet with legislators, participants provided information on KConnect and the need for a paid family and medical leave program, which is currently in the Legislature in the Michigan Family Leave Optimal Coverage (MI-FLOC) bills. These bills, which are supported by 71% of Michiganders, are also endorsed by a multitude of other organizations, such as People First Economy, which works with small businesses around the state of Michigan.
Carlos Martinez, President of People First Economy, spoke about the importance of these bills for small businesses.
“We believe that (MI-FLOC) makes small businesses more competitive. If you’re a small business with less than 20 employees, you actually can implement these programs at no cost to you,” he said.
Legislation similar to this has passed around the country, ultimately making the economy stronger, with data showing that small businesses are seeing minimal impact on their profit margin.
In total, we interacted with over 30 offices in the state Senate to advocate for a vital program that impacts home and family stability as well as economic mobility for all residents in Michigan.
It was remarkable to see our fellow advocates go from anxious and uncertain to empowered and excited by the end of the day. Policy and advocacy may sound complex, but it is rooted in listening to those who are impacted and building relationships with those who want to create change.