HOUSE MEMORIAL 1
50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011
INTRODUCED BY
Danice Picraux
A MEMORIAL
REQUESTING THE CREATION OF A STATEWIDE TASK FORCE TO ASSESS, AND RECOMMEND POLICY OPTIONS TO ADDRESS, FAMILY-FRIENDLY WORKPLACES FOR NEW MEXICO WOMEN AND FAMILIES.
WHEREAS, economic security is one of the building blocks necessary for individuals, families and communities to have a healthy and fulfilling quality of life; and
WHEREAS, to be economically secure means to have unconditional and consistent access to stable and supportive employment, quality education, safe housing, safe communities, nutritious food, health care, social services and social justice; and
WHEREAS, when individuals, families and communities are economically secure, they are physically and mentally healthy and are able to thrive in their own environments; and
WHEREAS, public policy at the local, state and national levels can be created to ensure economically secure lives; and
WHEREAS, when individuals, families and communities are not economically secure, negative health outcomes result that affect women and their families, particularly women and families of color; and
WHEREAS, according to the workforce solutions department's 2010 employee benefits survey, only sixty-six and one-half percent of full-time employees and seventeen and one-half percent of part-time employees were offered paid maternity leave, and only twenty-three and eight-tenths percent of part-time employees were offered paid sick leave; and
WHEREAS, despite the economic downturn and the economy's negative impact on some businesses, employers still find it hard to find and retain skilled employees; and
WHEREAS, an increasing number of women are the breadwinners for their families; and
WHEREAS, women are nearly fifty percent of the nation's work force, and the recession's economic impacts on women are more consequential for the economy than they would have been in the recessions of the last century; and
WHEREAS, women face a number of longer-term challenges, including the gender wage gap and female underrepresentation in higher levels of management; and
WHEREAS, women are more likely to work part time and have lower incomes; and
WHEREAS, women's health status falls as their family income levels fall; and
WHEREAS, women with lower incomes suffer disproportionately from chronic disease, disability, mental health issues and poor health; and
WHEREAS, approximately sixteen million seven hundred thousand women are uninsured nationwide; and
WHEREAS, uninsured women are more likely to lack adequate access to care and have poorer health outcomes; and
WHEREAS, a lack of insurance further heightens economic insecurity; and
WHEREAS, race and ethnicity are important determinants of economic security; and
WHEREAS, the state of New Mexico ranks third-highest in the nation for the percentage of persons below the federal poverty level; and
WHEREAS, New Mexico's median annual income for women is ranked forty-second in the nation; and
WHEREAS, fourteen and two-tenths percent of all New Mexicans have incomes below the federal poverty level; and
WHEREAS, thirteen and two-tenths percent, or ninety-six thousand one hundred eighty-four, of New Mexico households are headed by a woman, with no husband or male partner present; and
WHEREAS, among families with a female-headed household, thirty-six and two-tenths percent have income below the federal poverty level; and
WHEREAS, fifty-one and seven-tenths percent, or twenty-four thousand two hundred thirty-six, of grandparents who live with their grandchildren in New Mexico are primary caretakers, and the majority of these caretaker grandparents are women; and
WHEREAS, in New Mexico, women on average earn only seventy percent of what men earn; and
WHEREAS, for New Mexican women of color, the earnings gap is significantly higher than average: Hispanic women earn just fifty-five percent of what white men earn and American Indian women earn just fifty-three percent of what white men earn; and
WHEREAS, the office of the governor's council on women's health has completed significant research on the impact of economic security on the health of women and families;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the university of New Mexico's bureau of business and economic research be requested to convene a task force to define family-friendly policies and practices and to study policy options related to paid maternity leave, paid time off, part-time employee benefits, policy incentives for family-friendly small businesses, employment-based child care and other issues that will improve the health of women and families by addressing economic security; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force include representatives from the university of New Mexico's bureau of business and economic research, the women's advocacy community, the workforce solutions department, the economic development department, the department of health, the human services department, the children, youth and families department's in-home infant child care program, the chambers of commerce of New Mexico cities with populations of more than sixty thousand individuals, the small business community, an asset-building organization, a business and professional women's association and others that the bureau of business and economic research identifies; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force be requested to submit an interim report to the legislative health and human services committee by November 1, 2011 and a final report to the legislative health and human services committee by November 1, 2012; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the governor, the chair and vice chair of the legislative health and human services committee, the secretary of workforce solutions, the secretary of economic development, the secretary of health, the secretary of human services, the secretary of children, youth and families, the director of the university of New Mexico's bureau of business and economic research and the chairs of two chambers of commerce of New Mexico cities with populations of more than sixty thousand individuals.
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