I work as a home health caregiver for the elderly

Dear President Obama,

My name is Rev. Harriet Bradley. I am a board member of 9to5 Atlanta. The mission of 9to5 is to build a movement for economic justice by organizing directly impacted women to improve their working conditions.

I am in full support of seeing federal bills like the Healthy Families Act and the Family Act and state bills like the Family Care Act pass. In Georgia I have been working to pass the state bill the Family Care Act. This piece of legislation will help relieve stress from families. Being able to use paid sick days to care for a spouse, child or elderly parent will remove the threat of no pay or termination.

I work as a home health caregiver for the elderly and people with disabilities. I have seen what happens when the family member who cares for a client after my shift has surgery and no other family member is able to step in because they can’t use their own paid sick time to care for a relative. The family has to spend extra money they don’t have. Having the Family Care Act in place not only will save family money, but will also make life less stressful.

I appreciate all that you and your administration have done to advocate for working families who need new public policies – such as the Healthy Families Act and the FAMILY Act in order to do their best on the job, while providing critical caregiving for family members.

I urge you to continue to use your office to build public awareness and support for these important policy solutions.

Sincerely,
Rev. Harriet Bradley
Decatur, GA