Thanks to the state courts and legislature, as of May 1, abortion access in Florida is now more restricted than ever under the state’s near-total ban. The impact will resonate throughout the state, harming women and hurting the state economy.
Senate Holds Key Hearing on the Economic Impact of Abortion Restrictions
IWPR's research shows that abortion restrictions harm women’s health and education leading to disproportionate impacts on the national and state economy. A key Senate committee took up this important issue at a hearing on February 28 and IWPR was there.
FAFSA Delays-Navigating the Thorny Landscape of College Unaffordability
For many low-income college students, the prevailing Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) delays are causing added panic to our ever-growing educational crisis of soaring college costs. IWPR's Policy Team weighs in.
Establish a National Child Care Infrastructure Like many working mothers, Nancy, a public affairs professional in Arlington, Virginia, left the workplace where she had spent almost 15 years in order to take care of her two-month old son when the pandemic took away her child care options. She expressed a sense of guilt in an interview with WBUR: “[M]y mother, she dedicated her life to raising me and my siblings. And while I think we are as successful today because [...]
When she was laid off in mid-March from a job she had held for decades, a hotel employee in Rhode Island felt abandoned by her employer. As she told WBUR, she felt that they did not care that, “I have a family that rely on me. It's not like that you are only telling me when something happened to me, you're telling everybody who depend on me.” Ideally, assistance and support should be widely available to individuals and families in [...]
Women have experienced a disproportionate number of job losses since the start of the pandemic. The COVID pandemic has had an unprecedented economic impact on women— A “shecession” in which 11.5 million women lost jobs between February and May, compared to 9 million men. Women also dropped out of the labor force in numbers far higher than men-- between August and September, 2.65 million have left the workforce since February due to caretaking demands or an inability to find work. [...]
I do believe that as parents continue to go back to work, we are going to remain open. I don’t see child care becoming a declining business. Some parents that are able to stay home with their children will probably do so. I would probably do so if I were in their position also. But there are, unfortunately, parents that have no other choice but to work and place their child back in care. -Tenille, a child care provider Since [...]
How are child care centers managing during the pandemic? How are centers keeping doors open, paying staff, and meeting the competing demands for increased hygiene and increased class sizes? IWPR spoke with Tenille, a child care provider, to learn more about how care centers are surviving the child care crisis. Here is an excerpt of our interview: IWPR: How long have you been in the child care industry? Tenille: I have been a family child care provider for four and [...]