Dear Editor,
Having a great home and job and a healthy family you can love and be with is the American dream. But without universal paid leave in Vermont, many workers are forced to make the terrible choice of deciding which part of this dream they might have to give up. I’m one of them.
With elderly parents, I was forced to make numerous hard decisions quickly when my dad died of a heart attack at the same time my mom was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.
Already reeling from the loss of my dad, I had to quickly figure out how to care for my mom, but I had recently moved away. I had a full-time job that I loved, but it was also mentally and physically exhausting. I asked for a leave of absence to help care for my mom, but my employer said no.
With no existing help for my mom’s care and treatment, the choice was made for me — I had to leave my job, which also meant I had to give up my dream apartment and move into my mom’s unfinished basement with my three pets.
I spent six months caring for my mom, three months of which were without a job. I think we’ve all heard stories of people in situations like that, and we never think it will be us, but it can happen to anyone.
I was shocked that my employer didn’t allow me to take the leave I needed. The sacrifice was hard, but it was more valuable to be present for my mom. I didn’t want to be worrying about work all the time and not be able to give her the care and attention she needed.
I would do it all again a million times over because I never got to have that time with my dad. I wanted to be with my mom. I couldn’t have lived with the guilt of not helping all I could. But losing my job, paycheck and home was hard. Though I didn’t have the best place to live when I gave those up — an unfinished basement — I was grateful because I could be close to my mom. Others don’t have that choice.
I met my future husband in the middle of this crisis, and we finally thought we had a good solution on the horizon: buying a house together and moving Mom in. Unfortunately, she died the day before that was going to happen.
This journey shouldn’t be so hard for Vermont workers. Health care crises are difficult enough to get through. But trying to manage care for yourself or a loved one in a health emergency is compounded many times over when you don’t have the financial resources or time necessary to ensure the best possible outcome.
Vermont needs universal paid leave that will give workers wages and peace of mind in times of health crises. Already, 13 states, including New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maine, have passed such legislation. We know from their experience that paid leave builds a strong workforce, supports healthy families, and fights poverty. It’s time Vermont’s leadership made this a priority here.
Emily Bridges,
Cornwall, Vt.
