In his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama outlined a blueprint for helping Americans in a difficult economic climate. Women and families continue to be impacted by the effects of the Great Recession and the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) has experts available to discuss their specific needs.

According to IWPR analysis, women have regained about one out of four (23 percent) of the total jobs they lost in the recession, while men have gained more than one out of three (34 percent). The Women’s Scholars Forum, led by IWPR President Heidi Hartmann, outlined several measures for boosting employment for women, some of which were cited in the supporting literature for the American Jobs Act.

Women, on average, continue to earn less than men. As the President acknowledged in his speech, achieving “equal pay for equal work” is an important step forward for the economy.

Available to comment:

Government policies to boost employment for women, the post-recession job gap
Dr. Heidi Hartmann, Ph.D., President of IWPR is an economist, MacArthur fellow, and co-author of Still A Man’s Labor Market: The Long-Term Earnings Gap and Equal Pay for Working Families.

She lectures widely on women, economics, and public policy; frequently testifies before the U.S. Congress (most recently at the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee on the economic status of older women following the recession); and has commented in prominent print and broadcast news outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Economist, and PBS NewsHour.

Women’s education and training, work-life balance, job quality
Barbara Gault, Ph.D., Vice President and Executive Director of IWPR is the co-author of  “The Costs and Benefits of Policies to Advance Work Life Integration.” She has testified in Congress, has spoken on women’s issues in venues throughout the country, and has appeared in a range of media outlets.

The gender wage gap and pay equity, workplace flexibility, gender discrimination
Ariane Hegewisch, Study Director, started her career in local economic development, developing strategies for greater gender equality in employment and training in local government in the United Kingdom.

She has published many papers and articles and co-edited several books, including “Women, work and inequality: The challenge of equal pay in a deregulated labour market.” She has been cited in major media outlets in the United States and internationally.

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Many regard the Supreme Court decision Roe vs. Wade as a significant step forward in women’s reproductive rights. The decision, handed down in 1971, affirmatively answered the question of whether women had the right to terminate their pregnancies through abortions.

However, as the case celebrates its 39^th anniversary, there are concerns that the progress made in granting women full control of their bodies will soon be for naught.

“Despite the fact that the majority of Americans believe that women have the right to make deeply personal decisions about their health care, the attacks on abortion have been unrelenting,” said Lillian Tamayo, the CEO of Planned Parenthood.

Tamayo firmly contends that this progress must not see hindrance, an opinion that she made known outside the Federal Building in Broward, Fl. on January 22 at 3 p.m.  Tamayo was one of an estimated 100 attendees at a Pro-Choice Rally held at the courthouse to not only recognize the impact of Roe v. Wade on women’s rights, but to encourage those present to not allow their leaders to take those rights away.

Other persons who turned out at the Rally included additional members of Planned Parenthood, representatives from the Pro-Choice Coalition of Broward County, as well as a group of medical students from Nova. Each of these individuals spent equal amounts of time waving their signs on the sides of the street, to appreciative honks and waves from drivers, as well as listening to individuals make their opinions known about the tenuous state of women’s reproductive rights.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a senator from Florida and Chairperson of the Democratic National Committee, also appeared at this rally, along with Patrick Murphy and Lois Frankel – two people who are aiming to join Mrs. Schultz in the Congressional halls. Frankel and Murphy are both aiming for the seat occupied by Rep. Allen West. Frankel expressed particular disgust at his obstinate attitude:

“He is uncompromising and bombastic at a time where we need to roll up our sleeves and work together,” Frankel said. Frankel chose to attend this rally to continue her fight for women’s rights. She thought it was important for women to have the tools necessary to make key life decisions concerning their pregnancies.

She was quick to point out that West has used his time in Congress to regress the rights of women. “He voted for the Ryan bill, a proposal that would have limited a woman’s access to maternity care. He has also voted to defund Planned Parenthood and has chastised women who support Planned Parenthood’s values,” she said.

Murphy also expressed revulsion at West’s actions and attitude, mentioning that voters deem his style of leadership unacceptable. “Voters want an individual who will move the country forward, as well as someone who is qualified enough to understand the issues of the day,” he said. Murphy expressed confidence that he could be that person; jobs are what voters are thinking about, and should he win, that issue will be top priority.

“The first action I would take should I be elected is to promote the President’s American Jobs Act,” he said. Wasserman Schultz also took the time to reference the President when it was time for her to address the audience; she noted his bravery in standing up to anti-choice groups by protecting the birth control coverage benefit portion of the Affordable Care Act.

“Having a president that will stand up for women and their rights is crucial,” she noted. As she continued speaking to the audience, she pointed out that legal abortion actually helps in keeping women safe, stating that in 1965, 20 percent of all reported maternal deaths were due to illegal abortions.

Moreover, she encouraged abortion detractors to find common ground with abortion supporters, rather than undermine their efforts. “Instead of working against us by voting to defund Title X Family Planning programs for women who need them most, work with us to make abortion safe, legal and rare,” she said.

Wasserman Schultz remarked on how the Republicans in the House of Representatives have addressed bills that aim to defund Planned Parenthood and redefine rape to where it only included “forcible” actions. “This is what we are up against,” she said, and used this point to emphasize the importance of speaking out to make sure that women are able to retain their reproductive rights.

The DNC Chairwoman’s speech brought cheers from the audience upon its completion. Lauren Bello, part of the Broward Youth Council, found Wasserman Schultz’s words “inspiring”. “It is a good eye opener for young people to vote on these issues, which are far more important than people give them credit for,” she said.

Estee Rosenberg Paviled, a realtor and artist, hoped that the DNC Chairwoman’s message would resonate with members of Congress and make them cease their assault on women’s rights. “I think it is terrible how they are trying to turn the clocks back on a woman’s right to choose. We need to keep government out of our bedrooms,” she said.

As a new Congressional session progresses, each of the attendees at the rally made it clear that they were going to keep a close eye on how members of Congress vote on women’s rights. “Women are going to be watching them closely and taking names,” said Tamayo.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/us-mission/

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With the 2012 election already off to a competitive start, many presidential candidates will continue to battle for the lead in the upcoming months in several scheduled debates. Many events come next for the leading GOP Presidential candidates, and job creation will be a fundamental topic surrounding each debate.

A forum, which was funded by Senator Jim DeMint, of South Carolina on Labor Day, allowed candidates the opportunity to discuss their prime issues as well as make an appearance and get some camera time.  Within the next six weeks, a total of five debates will also take place.

The upcoming debates include a CNN/Tea Party Express GOP presidential debate in Tampa on September 12^th, and in Florida on the 22nd. Following in October will be one in New Hampshire and Las Vegas. After a lifeless August, in which there was no improvement of unemployment at all, job creation is being made an even more crucial issue for not only the president but for all of the GOP Presidential candidates running in the 2012 election.

Job Creation is Obama’s most challenging problem and topic that could either get him reelected or could destroy his chances. He has put a super committee in place to reduce 1.5$ trillion in deficit spending. President Obama also made a speech on Thursday night to a joint session in Congress about his American Jobs Act, which also makes for a topic in upcoming debates.

The debates will inevitably question the president’s plans, and offer a prime occasion for each candidate to propose their own job creation plans and how to rebuild the economy. Many have already proclaimed their plans for job creation, such as Mitt Romney on Tuesday, two days before the president even announced his American Jobs Act.

These debates are critical for each candidate’s survival and support, and will be an opportunity to challenge each other’s stances. This was seen in last week’s debate when Perry and Romney challenged each other’s record on job creation. These debates are also events that can make or break candidates. Perry the front-runner will have to watch his every move to make sure he stays in the lead.

Perry’s communication director Ray Sullivan even said, “It’s not his preferred venue.” He continued on to say, “But we respect the process and intend to participate and are confident that he will have a solid performance.” Being that there are five different debates spread out enables candidate’s time to make up for weak debates, but also facilitates them to flip-flop on issues.

The debates could very well be the best way for voters to see who has the most solid answers to many of the burning issues, job creation in particular. These debates will also give the public the ability to see which candidates will stay true to their message and which ones may change throughout their campaign.

To throw yet another curve ball into things, Palin could even enter the race in late fall, which would be interesting to see how this affects campaigning for all candidates. What comes next for the already intense 2012 election? Only time will tell.

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President Barack Obama addressed a joint session of Congress and the nation on Thursday night, asking for $447 billion to focus on jobs creation. The proposal, titled the “American Jobs Act,” includes more than $250 billion in tax incentives for small businesses and employers.

The administration would spend the rest of the money on infrastructure spending, state aid, unemployment insurance and neighborhood rehabilitation. According to the President, the proposal will be paid for by spending cuts found by the super committee. Senior administration officials said that the White House plans to introduce the president’s proposal next week as a single piece of legislation.

“I am sending this Congress a plan that you should pass right away,” Obama said in his evening speech. “There should be nothing controversial about this piece of legislation. Everything in here is the kind of proposal that’s been supported by both Democrats and Republicans — including many who sit here tonight. And everything in this bill will be paid for. Everything.”

President Obama, clearly on the offensive, stated he would push this bill outside of D.C. as well. “I intend to take that message to every corner of this country,” Obama said. “I also ask every American who agrees to lift your voice and tell the people who are gathered here tonight that you want action now.

Tell Washington that doing nothing is not an option.” In all, Obama said the phrase “pass this jobs bill” eight times in his speech. In the end of his speech, Obama called for Congress to close special interest tax loopholes as one way to cover the cost of the jobs bill. “This isn’t political grandstanding,” he said. “This isn’t class warfare. This is simple math. These are real choices that we have to make.”

The president’s suggested spending totals are much smaller than the economy’s actual needs. The country faces a $2 trillion infrastructure deficit, according to Obama’s top advisers. There is an estimated $270 billion to $500 billion in backlogged school maintenance costs. The government has cut over 200,000 jobs, many of them teachers and emergency first responders.

The outlines were still heralded by Democrats as an important start, as well as a much-needed shift in a political conversation that has been dominated by budget cuts.

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