National Work and Family Month - A Time to Recognize
Bi-Partisan Support for Policies that Help Working Families 

President Obama issued a statement on Monday recognizing October as National Work and Family Month. He said, "National Work and Family Month serves as a reminder to all of us, especially working caregivers, their families, and their employers, that while we have made great strides as a nation to adopt more flexible policies in the workplace, there's more we can do. Millions of Americans continue to struggle day-in and day-out to balance work and family life - to juggle their job responsibilities with caring for a child, an elderly relative, or a loved one with a disability."

Corporate Voices believes that corporate and federal policies that support work-life balance are a social and economic imperative for our country, and one that spans both sides of the political spectrum.

Sen. Mike Crapo accepting 2010 Best of Congress Award from Corporate Voices' Board Member Tekedra M. Jefferson

Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID), one of the co-sponsors of the Senate Resolution designating October as National Work and Family Month, said, "Flexible work arrangements are key to a productive and positive workplace. In challenging economic times, balancing work and family demands is difficult for so many people.  This is why it is so important to stop and recognize employee and family needs - and employers who provide flexible work arrangements." Senator Crapo received Corporate Voices' 2010 Best of Congress Award in September for his dedication to advancing the work-life agenda on Capitol Hill.

One of Corporate Voices' flagship initiatives is its national workplace flexibility campaign-an initiative begun at the request of the White House to create a broader awareness of the positive business and employee benefits of workplace flexibility. This national campaign recognizes "Business Champions" of workplace flexibility, and seeks to create the forward momentum critically needed to expand flexibility within the business community.

Corporate Voices would like to congratulate Deloitte LLP for joining the campaign since the last issue of this Update. Deloitte is the most recent addition to a cohort of leading Business Champions in the campaign, including: Accenture, Allstate Insurance Company, AOL, Baxter International, Bright Horizons Family Solutions, Childrens' Creative Learning Centers, Cisco Systems, CVS Caremark, Discovery Communications, Ernst & Young, George Mason University, Knowledge Universe, KPMG, LifeCare, Marriott International, McGladrey^SM, Northern Trust, Sodexo, and Workplace Options, among others.

Businesses enjoy a host of benefits and public recognition by joining this campaign, and there is no financial obligation. Those that join recognize that flexibility practices modernize the workplace to meet the needs of 21st century workers, so that families and businesses can be more productive, more competitive, healthier, and happier. For more information about the campaign, and on how to join, please visit: http://www.corporatevoices.org/our-work/flexcampaign.

Corporate Voices is also proud to highlight the following articles and activities related to National Work and Family Month:

• "Corporate Voices: Defining the Work-Life Field," Q&A with Donna Klein, CEO and Chief Executive, Corporate Voices, Huffington Post
  
  
• "Workplace Flexibility: Ensuring Success for the 21st Century," blog post by Stephen M. Wing, President, Corporate Voices, Huffington Post

• Donna Klein, recognized by Working Mother Media as one of the "7 Wonders of the Work-Life World," at the 100 Best Companies Work-Life Congress on October 27

• "The Future of Workplace Flexibility," a panel discussion to be organized by the Flexible Workplace Initiative on October 28 in Houston. Panelists will discuss policy development, technology, wellness, and implementation in the context of workplace flexibility. Register for the live webcast.

Special Report on Work-Life Balance to be
Released Through USA Today
Corporate Voices' Steve Wing to Contribute Introduction

We are pleased that Corporate Voices' president, Stephen M. Wing, will contribute the  introduction to a special report on "Work-Life Balance" which will appear as a stand-alone supplement in the December 3 weekend edition of USA Today. In previous issues of this Update, we announced a November publication date--please note that this release date has been pushed back by one month.

The special report will raise awareness of the trend over the last 25 years of increasing work pressure in America, its impact on families and individuals, and what is being done to promote work-life balance in the workforce. The 12-page special report will be published by Mediaplanet Publishing in USA. It will have 450,000 copies in circulation with a weekend readership of over 1 million.

Corporate Voices will also contribute a piece highlighting best-practice private sector initiatives to promote work-life balance, such as Corporate Voices' National Workplace Flexibility Campaign. All companies that join the campaign before November 8 will be recognized in this report. Find out how to join the national workplace flexibility campaign.

The special report will include articles featuring: how to effectively deal with stress; personal financial management; new entrants to the workforce; the role of technology in work-life balance; and how innovative companies are paving the way for work-life progress.

It will be published on the heels of National Work and Family Month, as well as the mid-term elections in November. As the U.S. experiences high unemployment, increasing poverty and inequality, and demographic changes revolutionizing the workforce, this will be a critical time to discuss what role federal and corporate policy can play in helping working families.

Please look out for this special report in USA Today on December 3! Partner companies interested in highlighting their work-life initiatives in this report through an ad-spot can contact Karynn Elio at karynn.elio@mediaplanet.com. The deadline for ad-spots has now been pushed back to November 8. Discounts are available for Corporate Voices' partner companies.

We've noticed our weekly readership is growing.  In order to reach even more readers and to provide them with the most up-to-date and relevant articles, we have decided to move our distribution of the Corporate Voices' Weekly Update to Thursday mornings.  We hope that this new schedule will provide our readers with even more time to read and share news about Corporate Voices' activities and work-life news that matter the most to them.