An Open Letter to America
October 31, 2003

We, the undersigned experts on work and family issues in the United States, believe it is critical that our country address the challenges families face as they attempt to balance work and family. In particular, we must address children's and parents' needs for high quality, affordable early childhood education and after-school care, and for affordable family leave. Research demonstrates that children benefit from high quality early education experiences. Families benefit when workers can leave work, with pay and job security, to address their members' critical needs. Businesses and the economy can benefit, too, when workers are not forced to choose between competing demands at home and at work. And our entire society benefits when family members can provide each other care in times of crisis, and when children are well prepared for school and able to have their parents care for them without jeopardizing their economic security.

A country as wealthy as the United States can afford to provide these family-friendly benefits. What has been lacking to date is not the means but the public will. Our work underlines the huge costs of not providing such benefits - to children, to families, to employers and to taxpayers.

We urge all candidates for public office in the United States to study these needs and propose public policies to help meet them. During the coming year, we will be collecting information from candidates on their commitment to meeting families' needs, and providing information on the issues to policy-makers, the media, and voters.