Working Families

Time to Care: Supporting Families, Caregivers, and the Work That Holds Us Together Raising kids. Caring for aging parents. Supporting a partner through surgery. Managing a chronic illness. These aren’t “personal issues” — they’re part of life. But in America today, we’ve made it nearly impossible to do those things without falling behind at work, going into debt, or burning out. It doesn’t have to be this way.

If we want an economy that truly works for working people, we need to support the real work that holds families and communities together: caregiving, parenting, healing, and aging with dignity.

Paid Family and Medical Leave — Nationally, For Everyone

- A federal paid family and medical leave program — at least 12 weeks per year
- Coverage for all workers, including part-time, gig, and self-employed workers
- Inclusive definitions of family, so people can care for the people they actually rely on
- Protections against retaliation, job loss, or benefit denial

Universal Child Care and Pre-K — Because Kids Deserve It and Parents Need It

- Make high-quality child care and preschool universally available
- Raise wages and benefits for child care workers — the workforce behind the workforce
- Expand access to nontraditional hours, especially for shift workers
- Fund a federal childcare infrastructure plan — just like we do for roads and bridges

Reinstate and Expand the Child Tax Credit

- Restore the monthly, refundable Child Tax Credit — with no work requirements
- Make it permanent and indexed to inflation
- Ensure it covers all low and moderate-income families, regardless of filing status

Guaranteed Sick Days — Because Nobody Should Have to Choose Between a Paycheck and Their Health

- At least 7 paid sick days per year for all workers
- Emergency paid leave during public health crises
- Legal protections against employers retaliating for taking sick time

Support Caregivers — From Home Aides to Family Members

- Expand the federal HCBS (Home and Community-Based Services) program
- Support direct care workers with better pay, training, and protections
- Provide tax credits and stipends for unpaid family caregivers
- Fund respite care programs, so caregivers can rest and recover, too

Help People Stay in the Workforce — and Protect Our Social Safety Net When caregiving forces people — especially women — to drop out of the workforce, families suffer today and Social Security suffers tomorrow.

That’s why this plan is also economic policy. By helping people stay in jobs they love and return when they’re ready, we:

- Grow the workforce
- Increase payroll tax contributions to Social Security and Medicare
- Keep experienced workers connected to their communities

Give Working Families More Predictability, More Flexibility, and More Time

- Schedule fairness laws — so workers aren’t penalized for being parents or caregivers
- Remote work protections and incentives — including support for workers who work from home part of the week or full-time
- Encouraging employers to adopt flexible scheduling models that increase retention, productivity, and wellbeing
- Investing in the digital infrastructure and training needed to make flexible work accessible across industries and income levels

This isn’t a handout. It’s a hand-built system — one that values care, stability, and time. Because a country that doesn’t care for its caregivers isn’t stable. And a democracy without time isn’t free.

Justin Ford For Congress

Working Families