Irene Strohbeen, Irene Strohbeen and Associates - Wisconsin

Appleton, WI

As an employee at a major corporation, and now a small business owner and consultant I have seen firsthand how our lack of a national paid leave program is hurting businesses of all sizes and their employees. Far too many families are suffering financial hardship due to lack of paid leave when a family member needs the worker(s) to be at home. Some workers, especially women, are leaving the workforce because the US doesn’t have a paid leave policy that supports them taking the time they need to care for their loved ones without jeopardizing their household budget. This results in businesses of all sizes spending too much for staff turnover in recruitment and training as well as lost productivity, plus less money flowing in the economy overall. This pandemic has been a wake-up call - we need to make passing a national paid leave program a priority in 2021.