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Corporate Voices at 10: Shaping the Future Workforce and Workplace
On June 15-17, Corporate Voices held its 2011 Annual Meeting and 10th Anniversary Celebration-- marking a decade of success in shaping corporate and public policies affecting the lives of working families. Over 100 leaders from the business, public policy, non-profit and research communities gathered at this convening to discuss issues critical to the future competitiveness of American business-- including workplace flexibility and the role businesses play in helping workers complete their college degrees and helping disadvantaged youth integrate into the workforce.
As Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) said during a bi-partisan Congressional briefing held in conjunction with the meeting, "We've been colleagues and collaborators in this effort to bring the corporate community into policy discussions to improve the lives of working families. We need your corporate voices at this time. We have an environment where cutting spending is the order of the day. We need business to make its voice heard on key issues like early education, K-12 and higher education. It is important that businesses are engaged in crafting policies that help working families."
Indeed, Corporate Voices' annual meeting occurred at a time when our national dialogue is focused on how to stimulate slow economic and job growth, and highlighted what best-practice corporate leaders are doing to build a stronger and more competitive workforce for the future. Read highlights and more speaker quotes, access new Learn and Earn micro case studies published in conjunction with the annual meeting and view photos taken on Corporate Voices' blog.
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Workplace Flexibility: Ensuring Success for the 21st Century
USAA Becomes Business Champion in National Campaign
 Corporate Voices would like to congratulate USAA for joining its national workplace flexibility campaign and for committing its support for Corporate Voices' Statement of Support for Expanding Workplace Flexibility. By joining this campaign, USAA has expressed its support for helping to create a broader awareness of the positive business and employee benefits of flexibility.
At a private White House briefing held last week in conjunction with Corporate Voices' 2011 Annual Partners Meeting, Tina Tchen, Chief of Staff for the First Lady, said "Your Statement of Support for Expanding Workplace Flexibility is so important for our national economic competitiveness. I challenge you to continue your national flexibility challenge to the business community."
Further expressing support for flexibility as an economic and social imperative, Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to the President, said, "If we want to win the future, if we want to be number 1, we have to invest in people. Flexibility is the best way to invest in people-it's good for communities, families and the country."
As part of this campaign, Corporate Voices is working with the Women's Bureau of the U.S. Department of Labor to organize Workplace Flexibility Dialogues across the country. The next and last Dialogue will be in New York City on June 30, and will focus on the use of flexibility with professional workers. If you are interested in attending this Dialogue, view the invitation and register online.
To date, 55 employers have joined this campaign, including large and small businesses across a variety of industries, to recognize flexibility as a business imperative and how flexible workplaces can catalyze success for working families and businesses in the 21st century. As demographic shifts transform our nation's workforce, flexible work arrangements offer an opportunity to modernize our workplaces so that working families and businesses can be more productive, more competitive, healthier and happier.
Corporate Voices launched this campaign in 2010 after the first-ever White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility to recognize employer best practices and to help expand the use of flexibility within the wider business community. To learn more about the campaign and how your business can join, visit Corporate Voices' website.
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Special Report on Employee Appreciation Released Through USA Today
Corporate Voices' Stephen M. Wing contributes key articles
 We are pleased that Corporate Voices' president, Stephen M. Wing, has contributed two key articles to a special report on "Employee Appreciation" which appeared as a stand-alone supplement in the June 17 weekend edition of USA Today in New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
The special report, published by Mediaplanet Publishing in USA, is an educational resource that addresses how employers can build workplaces in which people thrive. It includes articles that focus on employee benefits, wellness and work-life balance.
The articles contributed by Corporate Voices highlight what best-practice businesses are doing to invest in training, educating and growing their own talent, and how employers are adopting progressive management strategies to support nursing mothers at work. The special report had 450,000 copies in circulation with a weekend readership of over 1 million.
This report was published just ahead of Father's Day, and amidst a sluggish economy and a persistently high unemployment rate. As the changing demographics of the workforce and economic trends make it necessary for mothers, fathers, mature workers, caregivers and students to manage the dual demands of work and life, this is a critical time to discuss what role businesses can play in helping working families, and how businesses can adopt best-practice management strategies for success in the 21st century.
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Corporate Voices Announces Release of National Survey Results on the State of U.S. Economy
 Last month, Corporate Voices' partner company Workplace Options commissioned a national survey by Public Policy Polling, a respected opinion research firm. The survey-of 700 working Americans, at a range of ages and income levels, fielded May 23-25, 2011-was the latest in a series documenting shifts in public perceptions on the state of the economy and who the public believes is mainly responsible for improving conditions for American workers.
The poll results, detailed here, reinforce the view that corporate America has a critical role to play in supporting working families-and in advocating for public policy changes that do so. For example,
- When asked whether "the American business community has the responsibility to address challenges and issues affecting working families and communities," 56 percent said yes.
- When asked whether the government or employers "should have the main responsibility for improving conditions for low-wage workers" in particular, 55 percent said employers, compared to only 19 percent for government.
- Going further, six in ten of those surveyed said they would be "more inclined to patronize a business that went to extra lengths to help disadvantaged young Americans," such as high-school dropouts.
- And when asked whether "employers should be responsible for working with their elected officials and lawmakers to ensure policy changes that assist working families," 56 percent again said yes.
We would like to thank Lynn Fetterolf, a trustee of Corporate Voices, and her colleagues at Workplace Options for their generous support of this research.
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Only One Week Away: Women's Bureau National Dialogue on Workplace Flexibility
 Policies that support the realities of work and life balance are essential for a strong, healthy economy and nation. The Women's Bureau is hosting a series of Dialogues on Workplace Flexibility to bring together employers, employees, advocates, researchers, educators, unions and other stakeholders to discuss challenges and solutions for making flexibility work and to share best practices.
The National Dialogue on Workplace Flexibility will be held Thursday, June 30, 2011 at The City University of New York and will focus on how workplace flexibility policies can be made more widely available for professional workers.
Stewart Friedman (Practice Professor of Management and Director, Wharton Work/Life Integration Project) and Elizabeth Shuler (Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO) will be speaking at the NYC National Dialogue on Workplace Flexibility. Stay tuned for additional speakers. Space is limited; please confirm your attendance today! Simply click the link below.
When
Thursday, June 30, 2011
9:00 a.m. - 12:30 a.m.
Where
The Graduate Center
The City University of New York
365 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York 10016
For event details and to register, click here.
For special requests, call: (646) 264-3789
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Corporate Voices' Partner Companies Named Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles
 The National Business Group on Health recently honored 48 U.S. employers for their ongoing commitment to promoting healthy work environments and encouraging workers to live healthier lifestyles. Among the 2011 winners are Corporate Voices' partner companies Hewlett Packard, IBM and JPMorgan Chase. The employers were presented with the 2011 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles awards at the Business Group's Institute on Innovation in Workforce Well-being Leadership Summit held in Washington, DC.
Now in its seventh year, the Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles awards annually acknowledge those employers that have responded to the need to improve their workers' health, productivity and quality of life. The underlying goal of the program is to encourage all employers to take action. |
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The Partnership for America's Economic Success Releases New Advocacy Tools
 The Partnership for America's Economic Success, a project of the Pew Center on the States, has released three new advocacy tools:
Mobilizing Business Champions for Children is a guide for advocates on recruiting and supporting business champions.
Business Champions for Young Children is a short brief illustrating business activism around the country in support of early childhood policy.
Investing in America's Children: The Business Case, is an updated brief explaining why early childhood investments are critical to improving America's workforce and customer base.
Free copies of these publications can be obtained by emailing info@PartnershipforSuccess.org. You are also invited to sign up for the Partnership's monthly email with new materials on using the economic case to engage the business community, at www.PartnershipforSuccess.org.
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