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Legal Advocacy and Policy Projects
Impact Litigation
ERA’s main strategy is as much
about access to legal services and education as it is about justice. Impact
litigation educates the public and the legal profession about the larger
issues of discrimination, signals emerging legal trends in employment law,
and sets precedents that have the power to benefit large numbers of women
workers. We serve low-wage workers, women from immigrant communities, and
women of color, in addition to educating women about their legal rights
and teaching them to advocate for themselves. more>>
Work/Family Policy Advocacy
FMLA Changes
In January 2008, a new bill was signed into law to expand the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to allow family members of wounded service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan up to 26 weeks of job protected, unpaid leave. The bill will also allow family members to use their original FMLA leave when a family member is deployed to military service.
Now, the Department of Labor is working to implement the FMLA expansion for military families. However, in the name of efficiency, the Department combined the implementation of these new provisions with a series of proposed rules that could restrict workers' access to the FMLA. more>>
Paid Sick Days
Equal Rights Advocates is proud to support the California Paid Sick Days bill (AB 2716). Nearly six million working Californians (that’s 40%) currently receive ZERO paid sick days through their employers. Too many hardworking Californians are forced to choose between losing a day's wages, or even their jobs, when they or their family members become sick.
It is time to give all workers in California the right to paid sick days. more>>
California Paid Family Leave
Women are often forced to choose between caregiving and employment responsibilities. California is the first state to offer six weeks of paid leave to care for a new baby or an ill family member. ERA is working in coalition to ensure broad awareness and successful implementation of this law. Our efforts are paving the way for healthy work and family balance in other states. more>>
Tradeswomen Legal Advocacy Project
The skilled trades offer
wages and benefits that lift women and their families out of poverty.
But less than three percent of tradesworkers are women, despite laws
and regulations that prevent discrimination, harassment, and retaliation.
ERA’s work on behalf of tradeswomen continues our history
of fighting for access and improved working conditions for women in nontraditional
occupations. more>>
Higher Education
ERA’s Higher Education Legal Advocacy Project focused
on female faculty and administrators employed in institutions
of higher education who face widespread gender discrimination
in hiring, compensation, tenure awards, and post-tenure promotions.
ERA’s work to dismantle the barriers that prevent the
full and equal participation of women in higher education ended
formally on December 31, 2004, but we remain committed to ensuring
gender equity in academia. Charlotte Fishman, former Director
of the Project, is now Executive Director of Pick Up the Pace,
a California nonprofit whose mission is to identify and eliminate
barriers to women’s advancement, particularly discrimination
arising from gender stereotyping and work/family issues, through
research and writing, technical assistance, policy advocacy
and public education. Charlotte Fishman may be contacted at
415-217-7302 or at cfishman@sbcglobal.net.
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Letters of Support:
This section currently under construction.
Community Education & Trainings:
This section currently under construction.
Recent Advocacy:
ERA Opposes Elimination of the Commission on the Status of Women
Discrimination in the Retail Industry
Discrimination in the Restaurant Industry
High-Tech
Sweatshop Discrimination
Discrimination in the Garment Industry
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