Worklife Policy Timeline: Workplace Flexibility

By nconstable

  • The Fair Labor Standards Act

    This law established a national minimum wage, guaranteed at least “time and a half” for overtime in certain jobs, and prohibited most employment of minors. 29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.

  • Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

    This law prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, and religion. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq.

  • The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967

    This law protects individuals who are at least forty years of age from employment discrimination based on age. 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq.

  • The Rehabilitation Act of 1973

    This law prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in programs conducted by federal agencies, in programs receiving federal financial assistance, in federal employment and in the employment practices of federal contractors. PL 93-112 (Employment Provisions codified at 29 U.S.C. § 701 et seq.)

  • The Federal Employees Flexible and Compressed Work Schedules Act of 1978

    This law authorized the use of alternative and compressed work schedules in the federal government. 5 U.S.C. § 6120 et seq.

  • Federal Employees Part-Time Career Employment Act of 1978

    This law allowed and encouraged greater use of part-time options for federal employees to work less than the traditional 40-hour workweek. [5 U.S.C. § 3401 et seq.](5 U.S.C. § 3401 et seq.)

  • The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978

    This law amended the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit sex discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(k)

  • Creation of a Formal Federal Job-Sharing Program

    The annual Office of Personnel Management appropriations law required the creation of a formal job-sharing program. PL 101-136

  • Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

    This law prohibits discrimination in employment based on disability. 42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.

  • Family Medical Leave Act of 1993

    This law requires employers with at least 50 employees to provide job-protected unpaid time off to employees who work at least 1250 hours in the previous 12 months for the birth or adoption of a child or to care for the serious health condition of oneself or one’s immediate family member. 29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq.

  • National Performance Review Report

    Among other things, this report highlighted the federal government’s limited use of family-friendly workplace policies and recommended the use of additional flexible work arrangements.

  • Presidential Declaration of Labor History Month

    President Clinton’s Proclamation 6688 declared the month of May 1994 as Labor History Month to highlight the importance of studying the history of labor to understand the foundations of work life in America: the 8 hour day, the forty hour week, security in unemployment and old age, protection for the sick and injured, equal employment opportunity, protection for children and health and safety.

  • Presidential Memorandum on Expanding Family-Friendly Work Arrangements in the Executive Branch

    President Clinton issues a memorandum directing executive agencies to encourage flexible work arrangements.

  • Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act

    This law provides up to five years of job protection for the civilian employment of employees who are not full time military service members, but are called to active duty. 38 U.S.C. § 4301 et seq.

  • Federal Family Friendly Leave Act of 1994

    Federal Family Friendly Leave Act of 1994: This law allows federal employees to take time off in instances of medical need or death of family members. PL 103-3

  • Presidential Memorandum on Implementing Federal Family Friendly Work Arrangements

    President Clinton directed executive agencies to review and further utilize workplace flexibility via memorandum.

  • Department of Labor Regional Working Women’s Summits

    The Women’s Bureau of the Department of Labor held the first of 20 regional Working Women’s summits. Topics included elder care, the “glass ceiling,” fair pay, pensions, life-long learning, and workplace flexibility.

  • White House Conference on Early Child Development and Child Care

    The White House Conference on Early Child Development and Child Care highlighted the benefits of early nurturing parents.

  • Meeting the Needs of Today’s Workforce: Child Care Best Practices

    During a White House Ceremony, President Clinton released Meeting the Needs of Today’s Workforce: Child Care Best Practices, a publication by the Department of Labor Women’s Bureau that highlighted 40 innovative child care programs initiated by employers across the country to address the needs of working parents.

  • Work and Elder Care: Facts for Caregivers and Their Employers

    The Department of Labor Women’s Bureau released the publication Work and Elder Care: Facts for Caregivers and Their Employers.

  • Federal Caregivers Conference

    The Office of Personnel and Management sponsored a caregivers conference that addressed the issues and challenges older persons will face in the 21st century.

  • Federal Child Care Summit

    The Office of Personnel Management hosted the first Federal Child Care Summit in Kansas City, Missouri, which brought together experts and professionals from the private and public sectors to provide solutions for quality, affordable childcare.

  • New Tools to Help Parents Balance Work and Family

    By memorandum, President Clinton directed the Secretary of Labor to promulgate regulations that permit states to create ways to use the unemployment compensation system to support parents taking time off after the birth or adoption of a child. The regulations, which were repeated under President Bush, allowed states to create ways for parents to obtain unemployment compensation for the first year a child was with the family.

  • National Work and Family Month Resolution

    This resolution designated October as National Work and Family Month and urged public officials and employers to work together to achieve more balance between work and family. S.Res.210

  • Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2004

    The Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2004 provided reform for federal employment in the area of pay. The law included limitations on pay, bonus information, and reporting requirements for the federal government. PL108-411

  • Corporate Voices' CEO Statement of Support for Expanding Workplace Flexibility

    Six top executives signed the Corporate Voices CEO Statement of Support for Expanding Workplace Flexibility stating that they believe in flexibility as a beneficial management tool and that they were committed to expanding flexibility in their workplaces. Additionally, these CEOs agreed to continue to provide leadership in communicating the benefits of workplace flexibility policies to others.

  • Model Workplace Supports for Lower-Wage Employees Toolkit

    Corporate Voices created the Model Workplace Supports for Lower-Wage Employees Toolkit to provide information about programs that demonstrate the importance of hourly employees to a company and also help those workers with financial and family issues that affect their ability to perform optimally on the job. This Toolkit is updated regularly, most recently on February 18, 2010.

  • White House Conference on Aging

    Held Dec. 11-14, the White House Conference on Aging brought 1200 delegates together to make recommendations to the President and Congress on how best to guide national aging policies. A number of recommendations related to economic security and workplace flexibility were issued in 2006.

  • Creation of the Interagency Taskforce on the Aging of the American Workforce

    The Department of Labor created an Interagency Taskforce on the Aging of the American Workforce to identify strategies to enhance the ability of older Americans to remain in or re-enter the labor market and pursue self-employment opportunities and enable businesses to take full advantage of this skilled labor pool. The Report of the Taskforce on the Aging of the American Workforce was released in February 2008.

  • Career Patterns Initiative

    The Office of Personnel Management began the Career Patterns Initiative to find new approaches to bring the next generation into federal government positions. The initiative helped federal agencies promote “flexibilities,” including flexible work arrangements, part time employment, and mid-career entry.

  • Employer Best Practices for Workers with Caregiving Responsibilities

    The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued the Employer Best Practices for Workers with Caregiving Responsibilities to give guidance on best practices that employers may adopt to reduce discrimination against caregivers.

  • Bipartisan Senate Study Group on Workplace Flexibility

    Co-chaired by Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Blanche Lincoln (D-AK), the Bipartisan Senate Study Group on Workplace Flexibility was established to explore the most up-to-date research, policy and business practices on flexible work arrangement. The Study Group also provided staff with an opportunity for meaningful discussion on how increased access to flexibility can help both businesses and employees.

  • ADA Amendments Act of 2008

    The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 expanded the definition of “disability” used in the Americans with Disabilities Act to encourage broad coverage for workers. PL 110-325

  • National Work and Family Month Designation

    The House of Representatives passed House Resolution 1440 by unanimous consent, designating October as National Work and Family Month.

  • 2008 Presidential Election

    This was the first Presidential Election with platforms on workplace flexibility from both parties. Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain announces he would create a National Commission on Workplace Flexibility and Choice and support Head Start. Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack Obama pledged to expand access to flexible work arrangements, paid sick days and leave, and make the federal government a model employer by allowing employees to request flexible arrangements.

  • Revised FMLA Regulations

    The Department of Labor promulgated revised FMLA regulations and the first FMLA regulations governing the military family leave provisions. The regulations follow a review of the agency’s experiences and over 15000 comments received in response to a 2006 Request for Information on the FMLA (RFI), which were summarized in a 2007 Report on the RFI .

  • White House Task Force on Middle Class Working Families Created

    The White House Task Force on Middle Class Working Families was created by Presidential Memorandum. Chaired by Vice President Joe Biden, the Task Force focused on expanding education and life-long training opportunities, improving the work-family balance, restoring labor standards, protecting the middle-class and working-class family incomes, and protecting retirement security.

  • White House Council on Women and Girls Created

    The White House Council on Women and Girls was created by Executive Order 13506. Chaired by senior advisor and assistant to the president for Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, Valerie Jarrett, the Council provided a coordinated federal response to the challenges faced by women and girls and to ensure that all agencies consider how their policies and programs impact women and families.

  • First Lady Michelle Obama Speaks at Corporate Voices’ Eighth Annual Partners Meeting

    First Lady Obama urged companies to support working families with flexible work schedules, maternity leave, paid sick leave, and onsite childcare. The First Lady recognized best practice companies who are implementing flexibility programs that support the bottom line. In addition, Corporate Voices released its Innovative Workplace Flexibility Options for Hourly Workers report.

  • Bipartisan Senate Study Group on Workplace Flexibility

    The Bipartisan Senate Study Group on Workplace Flexibility asked selected advocacy groups to submit a short statement of their work-life priorities to help them work towards “expanding access to workplace flexibility [that] will result in better businesses, a stronger workforce and healthier families.”

  • National Work and Family Month 2009

    October 2009 was designated as “National Work and Family Month.” The Senate and House of Representatives both recognized the importance of work schedules that allow employees to spend time with their families, to perform jobs productively, and to healthy families. The resolution urged public officials, employers, employees, and the general public to work together to achieve more balance between work and family. S. Res. 296, H.Res.768

  • Section 4207 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

    A major health care reform bill, included amendments to the Fair Labor Standards Act. This section required employers to provide a place outside of public view within the worksite for employees to lactate. The employer must also allow for reasonable break times for breast milk expression for one year after the birth of the employee’s child each time the employee has the need to express milk. PL111-148

  • National Workplace Flexibility Campaign Launch: Ensuring Success for the 21st Century

    Announced at the White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility, this Corporate Voices led business challenge is a campaign to create broader awareness about the positive business and employee benefits of workplace flexibility. Businesses express support for workplace flexibility in their organizations and in the wider business community by signing a Statement of Support for Expanding Workplace Flexibility.

  • White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility

    The White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility brought individuals from the business community, policy experts, employees, and administration officials together to recognize best practices and find solutions to flexibility issues so that employees can meet the demands of their jobs and their families.

  • Council of Economic Advisors: Work-Life Balance and the Economics of Workplace Flexibility

    The Council of Economic Advisors also released Work-Life Balance and the Economics of Workplace Flexibility. This report on the economics of workplace flexibility documented changes in American society that increase the need for supportive flexibility policies, outlines some positive benefits of flexibility on businesses and the community, and calls for more data.

  • Best Companies for Hourly Workers

    Corporate Voices and Working Mother Media, Inc. launched the Best Companies for Hourly Workers Awards. The Awards highlighted companies with the most beneficial practices for hourly workers. Applicants were judged based on the provision of benefits, training, development and advancement programs, child care, and flexibility programs, among other things.

  • White House Task Force on Middle Class Working Families

    The White House Task Force on Middle Class Working Families held a meeting to address efforts to help balance work and family life and close the gender pay gap. At the meeting, the White House launched a Work-Flex Event Starter Kit to bring the flexibility conversation to businesses, employees, and communities across the country.

  • 2010 Best of Congress Award

    The Best of Congress Awards were created and given out by Corporate Voices for Working Families in partnership with Working Mother Media, Inc. to highlight excellence in improving the lives of working families through legislation and advocacy as well as members who have model employment practices in their own small offices. 30 recipients from both sides of the aisle were recognized as being Best of Congress for Work-Life.

  • U.S. Senate Designates October 2010 as National Work and Family Month

    The Senate designated October 2010 as National Work and Family Month. This reflected a Senate recognition that flexible work schedules that allow employees to spend time with their families contribute to healthy families as well as job productivity. The Senate urged public officials, employers, employees, and the general public to work together to achieve more balance between work and family. S. Res.618

  • The National Dialogue on Workplace Flexibility

    The National Dialogue on Workplace Flexibility kicked off with an event in Dallas. Building on the momentum of the White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility, the Women’s Bureau of the Department of Labor are leading conversations across the country to discuss workplace flexibility with key stakeholders from the business community, academics, unions, government, and advocates.