Over the past several months during this unprecedented pandemic, we have seen firsthand how employee benefits such as paid leave, income protection and flexible working arrangements are critical to workers across the country. At the same time, we have seen so many hardworking Americans lose access to these benefits altogether as the result of sweeping layoffs taking place across the country. For now, as the nation’s unemployment rate spikes and millions are out of work, much of the focus must be on navigating unemployment benefits and stimulus measures. However, this crisis has brought to the forefront a renewed sense of urgency for employers to take a more inclusive approach to meeting the diverse needs of workers over the long term.
When the chips are down and in the face of great uncertainty, employees and their families’ livelihood often depend on what their employer is offering. So far, we have seen Congress pass emergency paid leave programs for small and medium-sized businesses, which employ over 45% of the U.S. labor force, according to the Census Bureau.
