2026-10-19 - Commission on Women

00:18Let me know when we're set, Jennifer.

00:21>> All right.

00:23>> All right. Well, let's go ahead and kick

00:26this off. Welcome everybody to our first

00:30meeting of the revamped Commission on

00:32women. We are very excited to have you.

00:35I'm Leslie Skardon. I'm your chair and

00:38also represent District 12 on City

00:41Council, which is essentially the second

00:43half of James Island from Camp Road to

00:46Folly Beach minus all of the donut holes

00:49for the town and unincorporated county.

00:52And I'm the only woman on City Council.

00:54So, seems appropriate.

00:56>> [laughter]

00:57>> Um I also served on the committee with

01:00Jennifer Brown and Hilda Gadsden the

01:02past few years and so excited to kind of

01:06take the the next iteration of this

01:08going forward. Um so, what I thought we

01:10could do is I'll call on you. Just a

01:12couple of you could introduce yourself.

01:14Um say your name and what organization

01:16you're with. And then we'll go through

01:18the ordinance. We'll hear from the

01:21city's HR team on some of the work that

01:23they currently do. And then we'll get

01:25into discussion

01:28of what we want to tackle next year in

01:31terms of our our topic. So,

01:33um

01:34Dr. Cheek, do you want to go first?

01:41And you're on mute.

01:46Uh Dr. Cheek, you're on mute.

01:54>> I'm Deanna Ellington Cheek. I'm from

01:57Charleston originally. I'm affiliated

02:00with

02:01Roper Hospital. I'm semi-retired and I

02:05just take care of dialysis patients and

02:08I was at MUSC from 1988 to 2005.

02:14>> Great. Thank you.

02:17Cara.

02:19>> I'm Cara Erickson. I'm the co-president

02:22of the League of Women Voters in

02:23Charleston

02:25and also oversee communications for the

02:27league. I'm

02:29a downtown Charleston resident. Have

02:32been in Charleston for probably about 10

02:35years. Came originally from New York,

02:37worked in publishing and media

02:40for most of my career.

02:42>> Great.

02:43Jennifer Strickland.

02:47>> Good afternoon. I'm Jennifer Strickland.

02:48I work for the city of Charleston

02:51in the HR department. And I've been with

02:55the city for about

02:573 years. I grew up in Summerville, South

03:00Carolina. So really just a native here

03:03in Charleston.

03:05And excited. I'm

03:06a new newly appointed person on the on

03:10the commission. Thank you.

03:12>> Great.

03:13And Jennifer Brown.

03:17>> Good afternoon everybody. I'm Jennifer

03:20Brown. I love to say I am a come here.

03:23I'm not from here.

03:26But my son loves Charleston enough for

03:29everybody

03:30who is a native. I currently work with

03:32Charleston County Housing Authority

03:35running their family self-sufficiency

03:37program. And just love the opportunity

03:40to continue to serve on the commission

03:43and very excited to see us go into this

03:45next chapter. Thank you.

03:48>> Great. Janet.

03:53>> Hey all, my name is Janet Bates. I'm My

03:55day job is working at Terracon, which is

03:57an engineering firm here in town, but

03:59I'm here representing the Chamber of

04:00Mothers, which is a national nonprofit

04:03nonpartisan advocacy organization

04:05working for child care, paid leave, and

04:08affordable

04:09maternal health care.

04:14>> Great. Lavonda?

04:20>> Hi. Can you all hear me okay?

04:22>> Yes.

04:24>> Okay, great. I'm Lavonda Brown. I'm with

04:26the YWCA Greater Charleston. I'm a newly

04:30appointed to this commission. I'm really

04:32excited.

04:35Been in Charleston about 10 years. I am

04:37from the city by the sea known as

04:40Savannah, Georgia.

04:45>> Great. Hilda?

04:57Hilda, we can't hear you.

05:07Want to try one more time?

05:15Okay, I can introduce Hilda. How about

05:16that? So, Hilda Gadson previously served

05:20on the commission and is just an

05:22all-star.

05:23We'll get those audio issues sorted out,

05:25but Hilda, we're glad you're here.

05:28Amalia?

05:32>> Hi. Hi, everyone. I'm so sorry to to be

05:34late. I was having issues signing up

05:36with Zoom. Amalia Loxsado, I use she/her

05:39pronouns. I am your CEO at the Women's

05:42Rights and Empowerment Network. Very

05:44happy to be here, and I don't know if

05:45there was anything else I needed to

05:47answer at this point.

05:49>> Nope, that's great.

05:51Um and then Professor Alyssa Jones is

05:54our College of Charleston um gender

05:57studies representative. She's actually

05:59going through her tenure review right

06:00now, so she um sends her apologies, but

06:03um had an unavoidable conflict for this

06:06meeting, which we knew about for a long

06:07time. Um but she said um to send you all

06:10her regards. And then I know we have a

06:12couple of our wonderful wonderful city

06:14staff on here. Jennifer Cook, do you

06:16just want to say hello?

06:18>> Hi, I'm Jennifer Cook. I'm the clerk of

06:21council and I've worked for the city

06:23about 15 years.

06:25And it's a pleasure to be here.

06:28>> April.

06:30>> Hi, my name is April Slinkard. I am the

06:33benefits and wellness manager for the

06:34city of Charleston. I've worked for the

06:37city um this go around for 3 years. I

06:40started out of college working for the

06:42city, went back, got my nursing degree,

06:44did all the things, and then came back

06:46to the city. Um I love it. I've lived

06:48here for about 35 years.

06:50>> Awesome. Tammy.

06:53>> Hi, Tammy O'Berry, HR director for the

06:56city of Charleston, and been here about

06:57a year and a half, and very happy to be

06:59here. Thank you.

07:00>> Great. And Maylee.

07:04>> Hi. Um I work with the clerk of

07:07council's office, and I've been here for

07:09about 3 years, and also very happy to be

07:12here.

07:13>> Awesome. All right, did I miss anybody?

07:17Okay. Well, thank you all for doing

07:19that. Since it's our first meeting, just

07:20wanted um people to get familiar with

07:22who's on the call. Um our next agenda

07:25item is to review the ordinance, so um

07:28I'm going to go ahead and share my

07:30screen.

07:32And uh

07:34right. Okay, can you guys see this?

07:38Is it too small?

07:41Let me get a little bigger.

07:45All right, how's that?

07:47>> That's great.

07:48>> Awesome. So, the Commission on Women has

07:51been around for at least four or five

07:53years now, and believe four years ago

07:56was really part of what spearheaded the

07:59city's original paid family leave

08:01policy. And then I had the pleasure of

08:03serving on the commission the past few

08:06years, and I really wanted to kind of

08:09reinvigorate the commission and what

08:11we're able to do and line it up with the

08:14city's budget cycle. And specifically

08:17with key city staff and the mayor's

08:19office and council to ensure that the

08:22work that the committee does is getting

08:24attention and can create actionable and

08:28concrete recommendations going forward.

08:31So,

08:32we've reshaped the commission a bit. You

08:34know, the goal is to enhance life for

08:36women in Charleston, and we want to make

08:39sure that we're talking about topics

08:41that are germane to the city, right? So,

08:43we don't want to be taking on a federal

08:46policy that the city can't do anything

08:48about because we want our

08:49recommendations to be concrete and

08:52actionable each year. So, we've also

08:54shortened the the calendar. We used to

08:57meet monthly, and so I believe we can do

09:00our our work in four very intentional

09:03meetings throughout the year.

09:05So, today is our kickoff meeting, and

09:07then you all should have received the

09:09calendar invites for our upcoming

09:11meetings. And

09:13what this does is that it allows us to

09:16set our schedule. So, the process here

09:18is that in the Q4 meeting, which is

09:20today,

09:22we'll vote on the topic that we want to

09:24tackle next year. And so, this could be

09:27anything from paid family leave,

09:30affordable child care, pay equity, human

09:32trafficking, domestic abuse,

09:35elderly women and health care. And so,

09:37we know what the topic is at the end of

09:39the year so that for this Q1 meeting in

09:41January, we can line up um a slate of

09:45different experts who can come and share

09:47best practices with us. So, for example,

09:50if we decided to move forward on paid

09:53family leave, what we would do is we

09:54would ask um for national experts from

09:57organizations like Bloomberg or the

09:59Council of Mayors or other

10:01municipalities to come and report out

10:04best practices and what they've seen

10:06work and and different ideas.

10:09Once we gather that information and look

10:12at the landscape of what we can do, um

10:14we'll workshop a proposal with the

10:16corresponding staff within the city to

10:19help address this issue. So, bringing in

10:22the folks who are working on this every

10:23day at the city, um going through ideas

10:26and suggestions to have that proposal.

10:28That Q3 meeting then is designed to

10:31present the recommendation to the mayor

10:34and his staff and get it city council

10:37agenda so we can vote for it. Um and

10:40then it's purposely done in this order

10:42because right now the city's in the

10:44budget process and so we want to make

10:45sure if there's a budget implication

10:47associated with the change, we don't

10:49have to wait a whole year to then come

10:52back and see action on it. It's already

10:54done. And then that Q4 meeting,

10:57um the the next topic is selected. You

11:01all were chosen um very strategically.

11:03We followed the uh reordering of the

11:06Commission on Arts by selecting

11:08organizations

11:10that have a lot of expertise on this

11:12issue. So, we wanted the organizations

11:15um to have the seat to bring in that

11:18knowledge um to to share it with the

11:20commission and make really informed

11:22decisions going forward. So, again,

11:25today's meeting, we're going to um pick

11:27the topic for next year. And then

11:29between now and January 11th, um I will

11:32bring together or I'll reach out to

11:34different experts and get them lined up,

11:35get them on our calendar. I'll reach out

11:38to you guys for any

11:39experts that we should, organizations

11:41that we should have. You guys will

11:43probably present to you on that topic.

11:46And then in April we'll be able to

11:47workshop our proposal and go forward.

11:50So with that, I'm going to stop sharing.

11:53Are there any questions about kind of

11:55the process that we're following and

11:56what we're hoping to achieve?

12:01Okay, awesome.

12:03So what we we had held a pre-call and I

12:07think that the two topics I would really

12:09like for us to consider next year are

12:12paid family leave and affordable child

12:15care. I think those would give us the

12:16most one of those would give us a very

12:18kind of concrete win that we can then

12:21build upon going forward. And so to and

12:24of course we can we can discuss others

12:26if you want but I know there's a lot of

12:27work being done in those two areas now

12:30especially in in affordable child care.

12:32And so I believe there are a lot of

12:34different examples of proposals that we

12:36could workshop and hear about and move

12:38forward. So we would have a really solid

12:40win to kick us off on.

12:42We've asked the city's HR team here

12:45today to present on what the city is

12:48already doing with paid family leave. I

12:50believe that there are a couple of

12:53updates to the the paid family leave

12:55policy. So I thought it would be helpful

12:57to have the city HR team kind of just

12:59give us an overview of what paid family

13:02leave is is in the city right now, where

13:05it's going and then we can have a larger

13:08discussion to see if that's something

13:10that we would want to work on increasing

13:12for next year or if we would want to

13:13look at something like child care

13:15solutions

13:17to to focus on next year. Does that

13:19sound good?

13:21Okay, so I will turn it over to Tammy.

13:24Are you giving the presentation?

13:27>> I am not. April's going to give the

13:29presentation.

13:29>> April, okay.

13:31The floor is yours, April.

13:34>> Okay.

13:35I am going to

13:37share

13:39>> [clears throat]

13:40>> Can everybody see the screen?

13:43>> Yes.

13:44>> Okay.

13:45So, currently, uh and I'm just going to

13:48kind of start with what we are doing

13:51now, what we have in place.

13:53Um we currently have a paid maternity

13:56leave, um which is available to the

13:58biological mother, that's 4 weeks paid

14:00leave.

14:02Um

14:03that is uh used at the birth of the

14:05child.

14:06We also then have a paid paternity

14:09leave, um which is available also to the

14:11biological mother, um or adopting

14:14parent, foster parent, or co-parent, and

14:17that's 2 weeks of paid leave. So, for

14:20example, the biological mother can stack

14:23those, and they can they would have 6

14:26weeks.

14:27The 4 weeks, like I said, um is used at

14:30the birth of the child, the 2 weeks um

14:32would be used within the 12 months of

14:35birth or placement of the child.

14:37Uh and those that paternity leave is um

14:41applicable for births, adoptions, foster

14:44care placement.

14:46So, that's what we currently have in

14:48place um for our employees. We have been

14:52looking at options, um so this is very

14:55timely. Um we've been looking at

14:57different options and and what we think

15:00um may be improvements um to the policy.

15:08>> And April, were some of those options to

15:11go up to 6 weeks, or um are those

15:13options that could be shared here, or

15:15would would you be looking to the

15:17commission to potentially make

15:18recommendations next year?

15:21>> So, we had started the process of

15:23looking at um what the state of South

15:26Carolina offers for state employees.

15:29Currently

15:31they offer Sorry, I'm going to my next

15:34slide. There we go. They offer the birth

15:36parents 6 weeks paid, which ultimately

15:39is in alignment with ours.

15:42But as of October 1st, they

15:45started a 4-week paid

15:48leave for the non-birthing parent, which

15:51is an increase from 2 weeks.

15:53So our kind of our thought process was

15:56that might be a good transition

16:00to the next step of what we might be

16:02able to offer.

16:05We also

16:08have been asked by

16:10department since we are heavily focused

16:12on public safety

16:14to just kind of be

16:16aware

16:17of like need of filling

16:21filling jobs while people are out

16:23long-term. So we just need to balance

16:25the needs of all the departments, but

16:27make sure that we're giving

16:29as much

16:30leave

16:32and and resources to mothers and

16:34families as we can.

16:37>> Got it. And [clears throat] just to be

16:39clear, so the the state employees, the

16:42birth parent gets 2 more weeks than city

16:45and the non-birthing parent gets 2 more

16:46weeks.

16:47>> The birth parent Ultimately, the 6 weeks

16:50is the same for the city of Charleston

16:52and for the state. It's just structured

16:54a little differently. In the state

16:59it is 6 weeks as a chunk, as one block.

17:03For us, it's 4 weeks plus the 2 weeks

17:06can be taken within the first 12 months.

17:08So there's some extra flexibility in

17:10ours. I believe than in the state. So

17:13those 2 weeks um, for our employees can

17:17be used at any time within that 12

17:19months. It doesn't have to be used um,

17:22right at the birth.

17:23>> Oh, I see. I see. Okay. Got it.

17:28>> Madam

17:29Madam Chair, um, Commissioner Bates has

17:32her hand up.

17:34>> Yes, thank you.

17:35>> Hi, thank you. Just a point of

17:37clarification. That additional two

17:39weeks, if the

17:41if the partner took the two weeks,

17:44is the birthing parent still eligible

17:46for the additional two weeks?

17:51>> If

17:52I'm sorry, say that

17:53>> So the the way that I read it, it shows

17:55currently the the plan is that the birth

17:58the birth mother gets four weeks and

18:01then the birth mother or the foster

18:04parent or the co-parent or the partner

18:06gets two weeks. So if the birth parent

18:09uses the full six weeks, does the father

18:12say in this situation get two weeks?

18:15>> Yes.

18:16>> Okay, so it's both. So it is it Okay,

18:19thank

18:19>> If both work for the city, yes. Yes,

18:21that's correct.

18:21>> Okay.

18:27>> Thank you. Good question. April, oh, go

18:29ahead, Cara.

18:32You're on mute.

18:36Hey, Cara, you're on mute.

18:38>> Sorry. Okay, just a point of

18:40information. How many employees in the

18:41city of Charleston are impacted by this

18:45rule? I I just don't know the scope of

18:48of the the employee base.

18:52>> Uh, I would I would have to get that

18:54information. I can forward it back to

18:57you.

18:57>> Okay. I was just curious, roughly. Okay.

19:00>> have we have about

19:02uh, 2,000 employees, but um, to break it

19:04down by the impact, who would be

19:07impacted, I would get I can get that

19:08information for you. Not a problem.

19:10>> 2,000 is is is good. Thanks.

19:14>> Good question.

19:17April, did you have any other slides to

19:18share or was this it?

19:20>> Nope, that was it.

19:22>> Okay. Thank you, April.

19:23>> You're welcome.

19:24>> Um and then one question cuz I know that

19:26these have been presented to our HR

19:28committee that's made up of council

19:30members.

19:32Can the HR committee move on this

19:34separately outside of the Commission on

19:36Women this year to vote to increase

19:40what the city does to the state level?

19:45>> Um I'll take that one, Leslie.

19:48This is Tammy.

19:51We we are not council experts, so I'm

19:55going to leave that to Jennifer Cook,

19:57but what I do know is that at our last

19:59committee meeting, we started to talk

20:02about this and the committee asked us to

20:04pause it and talk about it when you came

20:06back next time.

20:08>> Okay.

20:08>> So it was moving forward in the

20:10committee

20:11with this proposal, but we were asked to

20:14pause. So Jennifer Cook may be able to

20:17tell us more about what we can or can't

20:20do from that perspective.

20:28>> Jennifer, do you mind following up on

20:30that and then we'll go to Janet?

20:32>> Um

20:33so I'm not sure that I am the best

20:36person to speak to that, but I imagine

20:39you know, any considerations like this

20:42would need to be a part of the budget.

20:45Um so I I think maybe there would need

20:47to be discussions with

20:50BFRC about that just to ensure that um

20:56that's reserved in the budget.

20:59But I don't know if that would be for

21:012027

21:02or if this is something that would be

21:04for 2028.

21:07And it would depend It would depend on

21:09what action that HR committee took at

21:12that time.

21:14>> Okay. Janet?

21:16>> Um

21:17a question just so that I understand the

21:20current plan and and the conversations

21:21y'all have had to date.

21:23Has there been any discussion or is

21:24there anything in the plan that um

21:26ensures the leave can be utilized for uh

21:30birthing parents who experience

21:32stillbirth?

21:36>> I know that um that is one of the im-

21:40changes that uh the state made was they

21:42included that as part of their language.

21:45Um that would be something that we would

21:47want to look at adding um to be more

21:49specific in our policy.

21:52>> Thank you.

21:53>> Good question.

21:56Does anyone else in the commission have

21:58questions about the city's current paid

22:00family leave policy?

22:06Okay.

22:07Oh, go ahead, Cara.

22:08>> I just wanted to ask um is there also a

22:11policy that would say you can take a

22:13certain amount of time unpaid and during

22:16that additional time would would would

22:19people be getting, you know, some sort

22:21of state disability payments? I don't

22:23know how it works in the state.

22:27>> Um well, I know um for us,

22:30they would be covered under FMLA

22:33um and be able to use any of their

22:36accrued leave um any of that after the 6

22:40weeks um to make the 12 weeks whole for

22:44FMLA.

22:45>> Okay.

22:46>> Um so, they have that ability in

22:49addition to the 6 weeks.

22:53>> And just to clarify, FMLA would

22:55typically be unpaid?

22:57Okay, so that's just guaranteed time off

22:59of work once the paid time is used. Um

23:04and doctors would need to write you out

23:08of work to be eligible for more time

23:11beyond that what the normal 6 to 8 weeks

23:14that a doctor would write you out for.

23:16So, April, stop me if I say anything

23:18wrong here, but let's say somebody's out

23:20for a regular maternity leave and

23:21they're written out for 6 weeks, it

23:23would be paid and they would come back.

23:26I believe a lot of times if you have a

23:28C-section, they can write you out for up

23:29to 8 weeks.

23:31You would have 6 weeks

23:33weeks of pay and if you're depending on

23:35your situation, you may or may not get

23:37disability

23:39after that depending on whether or not

23:41you are disabled according to the

23:43disability rules, but then any time

23:45remaining after that would be unpaid.

23:48>> Mhm.

23:53Question.

23:55Any other questions from the commission?

24:02Okay.

24:03Um well, thank you, HR team, for that.

24:07Um

24:08I'm going to share something that I

24:10probably said not so eloquently on our

24:12last HR committee. Um and please know

24:15this is in no way, shape, or form a

24:16criticism of our fantastic HR team and

24:19their staff, but to me 4 weeks is

24:21absolutely unacceptable. Um

24:24and just based on personal experience, I

24:27had an emergency C-section. I was in the

24:29hospital for 10 days. Um my boys were in

24:32the NICU for 2 weeks. Like to have to

24:35take them home and then go back to work

24:362 weeks after, I just couldn't imagine

24:38what that was and I had an employer who

24:40gave me 16 weeks. Um so, I I do feel

24:43very passionately about this topic and

24:48what I would like to see the the city do

24:50is is have a tiered plan to get to 12

24:53weeks over the course of a couple of

24:54years for all um

24:57the the biological mother and the

24:59partner,

25:00I think that is the minimum requirement

25:02now that we see and actually have a lot

25:05of people who I know get 6 months off

25:07now including 2 weeks before their due

25:09date and then after as well. So, I think

25:12there are excellent standards out there

25:14and I I don't think this is one of them.

25:16And again, I say that with with no

25:20no malice towards our HR staff. They're

25:21incredible. We have an incredible

25:23benefits team, but I think this is an

25:25area of improvement and one of the

25:26reasons why I care so deeply about this

25:28commission is because I want to see us

25:31do great work in this area.

25:33And so, I do think this could be a

25:35really great focus place for us for the

25:39coming year.

25:40At the same time, I know that affordable

25:43child care has become a topic that is

25:46widely embraced by a lot of different

25:49stakeholders including our business

25:50community.

25:52And I've actually been approached with

25:54some really great ideas around how the

25:56city could actually change its zoning

25:57code to allow for more daycares in the

26:01city for example to help cut some red

26:03tape. And so, for your all's background,

26:05the city's also going through our zoning

26:07code rewrite. So, there's a nice

26:10parallel there happening.

26:13And so, I know that there's a lot we

26:14could study on the the child care side

26:17and understanding what options are

26:19available to municipalities to help

26:21create more child care options. And

26:24that's not something I know a lot about.

26:25I know Janet probably has a lot of ideas

26:27and a lot of you on this commission do.

26:30So, I think that could be a really rich

26:31area

26:33for study as well.

26:35Um

26:35And we also do have this other path

26:39through the HR committee.

26:41So, I

26:42one option to propose and I'll open it

26:44up for discussion is that you know, if

26:46this committee were to focus on

26:48affordable child care next year, I I

26:50continue to work with our HR committee

26:52chair,

26:53and our incredible staff. Sorry, this is

26:55not the You guys are amazing. I just

26:57don't like the policy. I love all you

26:59though.

27:00And and try to push those increases

27:03through the HR committee as well, at

27:06least for next year to try to get on the

27:08same level as the state to start.

27:10So, I do kind of see two parallel paths

27:13there.

27:14But, I am one voice, so want to open the

27:17floor to you all.

27:26Jennifer Brown.

27:28>> Yes. Um

27:30is it possible

27:32cuz I like to dream big.

27:34Is it possible for this commission to

27:38work on both? When I say work on both, I

27:42I support your tier approach to 12.

27:46Who's to say maybe 16, but maybe that's

27:48pushing it. But, 12 and also to study

27:53the child care

27:55issue.

27:57Me personally,

27:59I didn't think that there was a problem

28:01that there were not enough daycares in

28:03Charleston. I thought that the

28:05affordability was the issue.

28:07Um but, my question or suggestion is can

28:11we do both?

28:15>> It's a good question. Let's have Dr.

28:17Cheek next.

28:21>> Let me unmute. I don't have an idea any

28:24idea of what child care costs. I'm

28:28probably the most senior person on this

28:31commission. So,

28:34I do have a grandchild who is now in

28:39in school. It's rather pricey, but you

28:43know,

28:45my daughter and son-in-law have good

28:48jobs and we help with that. But what

28:51what exactly

28:53is the cost of child care these days?

28:59>> Janet, you want to take that one?

29:01>> [laughter]

29:05>> Oh, and I can't hear you.

29:08>> Sorry.

29:09Um it depends on a lot of factors. So,

29:11it's going to depend on your geography.

29:13Um if you're living in a more rural area

29:15versus uh a more uh urban area. Also,

29:18the number of daycares does affect it

29:20because if there's only one in a

29:21population versus five, their prices

29:23tend to be higher. Um supply and demand

29:26takes uh takes into account there. And

29:28it also depends on the number of kids

29:30that you have within the facility. But

29:32you can be looking at upwards of $385 to

29:34$400 a week per child. Um

29:38uh as an example, I mean, I think in in

29:40some I've heard some other people throw

29:41around numbers are like, "Oh, in other

29:43cities we pay $30,000 a year for child

29:45care." Like, cool, you do here in

29:46Charleston, too. Um and so, when we're

29:49looking at the the cost of living and

29:52when we say that housing and

29:53transportation should cost 30% or less

29:56of someone's paycheck, what we're not

29:58taking into account is the additional

29:59infrastructure that is necessary for

30:01that person to go to work to make that

30:04paycheck. And that's the cost of of

30:06child care. The national number that's

30:08been agreed on is that it should only

30:09cost 7%. Um

30:12I have spent 6 years on on the child

30:14care front in Charleston and this is an

30:17issue that I'm incredibly passionate

30:18about. So, I was going to raise my hand

30:20and say, "I would really love for us to

30:21tackle this one." I'm also equally like

30:23quite frankly equally as passionate

30:25about the paid leave for many of the

30:26similar reasons that Leslie is.

30:28Um

30:29there are some pretty valuable resources

30:32that I'd be happy to bring to the

30:33commission related to

30:35um zoning laws. Uh Dorchester County has

30:37done some some recent work in the last

30:39year on changing their zoning laws to

30:40allow for daycares to come in with less

30:42red tape. There's also examples from out

30:44of state I'd be happy to bring to bear.

30:46Um there are a decent number of

30:48resources and um that I could share with

30:51you all in terms of um some reading on

30:53different municipalities in child care

30:55and some solutions that have been done

30:56and there's also a gentleman um who

30:58works for a company called Tutris um and

31:01he has been a passionate advocate for uh

31:03tri-share programs. Um tri-share

31:06programs are when the um parent, the um

31:10state, and the employers share the cost

31:12of the child care together and I think

31:14that that's a very interesting thing for

31:16us to consider um moving forward. So I

31:20either direction we go, I would also

31:21like to tackle both. Whoever said that,

31:23I'm I'm all about that. Um but it is uh

31:26I was at a recent meeting with the uh

31:28Chamber of Commerce here in Charleston

31:30and we're talking about what would make

31:32it more valuable for people to live in

31:34Charleston and to continue the economic

31:36growth that we're seeing here and the

31:37two top issues were housing and child

31:39care. So I worry if we wait that we're

31:42going to miss the opportunity to strike

31:43while the iron is hot on this one.

31:46Sorry, that was more information than

31:47you asked for.

31:48>> [laughter]

31:48>> No, that that that was great and I I

31:52would be interested in tackling both

31:54myself.

31:55>> [laughter]

31:57>> Tammy.

31:58>> Tammy.

32:04>> Sorry, trying to unmute myself there. Um

32:07I did want to clarify just for point of

32:10clarification that the city currently

32:13does have 6 weeks of paid maternity

32:15leave for

32:17the birth parent.

32:18I know we said 4 weeks earlier, but it's

32:204 + 2.

32:22If we structure ours like the state,

32:24it'll be more clearly six, but there is

32:276 weeks paid now for the birth parent

32:29and two for the other parent, the

32:33non-birth parent. Um what we're looking

32:35at doing right now is upping the

32:37non-birth parent to four and possibly

32:40converting our four plus two to a

32:42generic six.

32:44>> Thank you for that clarification.

32:46>> a point of clarification, okay.

32:47>> Thank you, yeah. Sorry, I'm

32:50um that's helpful and then with those um

32:52updates, Tammy, would it be

32:54incorporating the state language like

32:57including stillbirths?

32:59Yes, ma'am. Okay.

33:01Okay.

33:02So, that's helpful. So, just to clarify,

33:03those changes are on the table right now

33:07being evaluated by the HR committee.

33:09Okay. Um Amalia.

33:11>> they they paused

33:13They Sorry, they paused it, but they're

33:16They they're ready to evaluate it.

33:18>> Yes. Okay.

33:19>> Okay.

33:20>> Uh Amalia.

33:23>> Hi, thank you. Um I I am also on board

33:26with with tackling both.

33:29Um I I have a question. Is

33:33is the idea for the city of Charleston

33:35to continuously keep up with the state?

33:39I ask that because

33:41you know, part of part of our

33:43legislative agendas and as an

33:45organization, not as Amalia, but as an

33:47organization, is to increase the weeks

33:51off for both the birthing and the

33:52non-birthing parents and so

33:55I'm just curious as to how we're going

33:57to tackle that as a commission here and

33:58what the plan is for the city. Like if

34:00the if the city is going to continuously

34:03catch up with the state, then why not

34:05start working on that tiered approach

34:07now on paid leave?

34:10Um so, that's that question and then I

34:13also wanted to offer um in in my

34:16previous life

34:18we launched a a program in a different

34:21state um that gives single parents

34:24universal child care and I also worked

34:27with the um

34:29with the folks that did the blueprint on

34:31universal child care in New Mexico and I

34:34personally speaking think that universal

34:36child care for South Carolina is the way

34:38to go and anything else is a band-aid.

34:39So, um to the extent that I can be

34:42helpful in in that space, I'm I'm happy

34:46to give all the information and as

34:47someone who has now

34:49this is the first year I am not paying

34:51for child care. Um

34:54it's kind of it's kind of wild, but only

34:5623% of our families in South Carolina

34:59can actually afford child care.

35:02>> Yeah.

35:02>> So, the numbers are bleak.

35:05>> They are. Thank you for that. And to

35:06answer your first question, I mean, in

35:09my mind, like no, we should be ahead of

35:11the state. Um I think what's under what

35:14will be under consideration for the HR

35:16committee is a temporary

35:19uh level setting and adjustment to meet

35:22the lowest standards set by the state,

35:24but I would like to see us be a model

35:26for that and I do think there's an

35:28economic reason to do that in terms of

35:30staff recruitment and retention. Um and

35:32there's an economic benefit to having um

35:35extended paid family leave, if that's

35:37helpful.

35:40Um

35:41Jennifer Strickland.

35:44>> I just wanted to say that I kind of it

35:46sounds like we're all kind of on the

35:47same page. I do struggle with um both of

35:50these topics, which one do we tackle

35:53first? Um if we do kind of look at the

35:56parental um maternal leave as a tiered

35:59approach, I think that makes sense where

36:01we could kind of phase into that and

36:03then also work on the child care

36:05component. Um I personally have a

36:093-year-old.

36:10Um

36:11I think it's a combination of both, if I

36:13were to speak on what my um situation

36:16was in finding child care. The waitlists

36:19were 2 years long. So, I think there was

36:23a shortage on top of okay, well, I'm

36:26also paying a whole another mortgage on

36:28top of paying what I currently pay to

36:30live.

36:32Um so, I think it is affordability

36:34matched with okay, those wait lists and

36:36trying to get into, you know, the good

36:39schools or, you know, good education

36:41even on that that level because I mean,

36:44that's so important in the very

36:46beginning as well.

36:47Um as far as the uh maternity leave, I

36:51came from an organization when I did

36:53have my daughter where I had her and had

36:56to be back after 2 weeks and being a

36:58mother who is well into her 40s and had

37:01a child and I had some some things come

37:04up. Now, I didn't have a C-section, but

37:06I really did struggle just being a

37:08little bit older. It was really hard to

37:11leave a child that young and and go back

37:15to work. So, um I can speak on that and

37:18I think both of them are just as

37:19important and they kind of go hand in

37:20hand, too. So,

37:22thank you.

37:24>> Thank you for sharing that. Appreciate

37:26it.

37:29Okay. So, I have a thought for us

37:32because

37:34I too would love to this commission to

37:36tackle both at once and I also know that

37:38that would be we we need to double our

37:40meetings. Um

37:42so,

37:44I would propose that we make affordable

37:47child care the commission's

37:50topic of study for 2027

37:53and also then give a an endorsement or a

37:59um

38:00a resolution or um

38:03a vote that basically says, "Leslie, on

38:06the HR committee, go after this tiered

38:08approach with all of your might. You

38:10have our support

38:12um and I'll provide you all with updates

38:15on all of our calls about that."

38:18Um so, that way I I that would be kind

38:20of the best way to to two track it and

38:23see where we get. Uh And then, you know,

38:26next year if we haven't gotten anywhere,

38:27then we we double down.

38:30What do people think about that?

38:35Thoughts?

38:37>> Um I'll I'll jump in, Leslie. I I love

38:39that idea. One thing that I would ask is

38:41if there's an opportunity if the if the

38:43paid leave is coming up in front of

38:45council and there's an opportunity for

38:46public comment that this commission

38:48knows about it so we can either, you

38:50know, bring in some experts if that

38:52would be helpful.

38:53You know, I know both Wren and the

38:55Chamber of Mothers were involved with

38:58getting the state's paid leave to

39:00include stillbirth and we have some

39:02individuals

39:03who are in Charleston County who could

39:04certainly be a part of that discussion

39:06and and speak to the council about their

39:08own personal experience. So, I would

39:10love for this commission to be aware of

39:12when that's happening so that we can

39:13assist.

39:15>> That's a great idea and I think we could

39:16also probably we can ask the HR chair to

39:19if we could do public comment before one

39:21of those meetings as well.

39:23Tammy, do you have the next HR committee

39:27meeting handy? Sorry to put you on the

39:28spot.

39:29>> [laughter]

39:31>> I can look.

39:36>> And then just so you all know, I told

39:39Professor Jones that I would share that

39:41her preference was also for child care

39:44affordability. She had talked to some of

39:46the gender studies professors and that

39:48was their their focus.

39:50And while Tammy looks for that, I think

39:54one question I have for you all is the

39:56scope of child care that we want to look

39:58at. Um

40:00More personal stories here. This is why

40:01I love this commission.

40:03You know, our boys just transitioned

40:05from daycare to

40:08pre-K at our local neighborhood

40:10elementary school.

40:12The aftercare is an incredibly difficult

40:15issue, too.

40:17And so, you know, these kids start

40:19school at 7:00 a.m. and they get out at

40:212:25 p.m. Um, which makes it absolutely,

40:25incredibly hard to have two working

40:28parents. Um, and then, you don't have a

40:31ton of options and nannies are

40:33incredibly expensive and there aren't a

40:36lot of them to go around and and we were

40:38very fortunate to get into Kaleidoscope

40:40very last minute, but there just aren't

40:42that many aftercare programs that are

40:44also free and and Kaleidoscope still has

40:46a cost, too. So, you know, when I think

40:48of child care, I'm also the aftercare

40:51part comes to mind for me, too.

40:53Um, because that's a really big deal for

40:55working families, as well.

40:59Just put that out there.

41:02All right. So, um, Jennifer Cook, do we

41:05need to make an official motion, second,

41:08and and vote on our

41:10proposal to move forward?

41:12>> Yes.

41:13>> Okay. Can I make a motion as a chair?

41:17>> Yes.

41:18>> Okay.

41:19Um, well, then I would like to make a

41:21motion that the Commission on Women

41:24select affordable child care as our

41:272027,

41:29um, topic of of focus and discussion.

41:33And at the same time, that the

41:35Commission lends its support, um,

41:39to pursue

41:41I one, bringing the city of Charleston's

41:46paid family leave up to the state

41:48standards. And then, two, um, pursuing a

41:51tiered approach to increase the city's

41:55paid family leave policy moving forward.

42:01That's my motion.

42:03>> I second that ground.

42:07>> All right. Second from Janet, so we'll

42:08open it up to discussion. Jennifer

42:10Brown.

42:11>> I I just have one question. I thought

42:13the young lady from HR said city of

42:17Charleston does have 6 weeks just like

42:19the state. So, aren't we already

42:23on the state level and we just want to

42:25move to tier?

42:27>> It would also be adding an additional 2

42:29weeks for the non-biological parent and

42:32updating some of the language to include

42:35stillbirth leave for example.

42:37>> Oh, that is I forgot about the

42:39stillbirth. Thank you so much. Okay,

42:41thank you.

42:41>> Great question.

42:42>> Question.

42:44>> Any other discussion?

42:47Tammy.

42:49>> I do not have that meeting on my

42:51calendar. I believe it should probably

42:53be December. Jennifer Cook, do you have

42:56I mean

42:56>> I have it.

42:57>> Jennifer?

42:58>> I have it. It's November 19th.

43:01>> November 19th. Okay.

43:05All right, I will I'll work with

43:08I'll talk to the chief of staff and the

43:10mayor if we would need to move more

43:12quickly than that to have it included in

43:15the budget for next year. So, I'll do

43:17some pre-work ahead of that meeting

43:20to see if that's possible.

43:24Okay.

43:25Dr. Cheek.

43:31I think you're still muted.

43:36>> Is the state of South Carolina

43:39and I guess the city of Charleston

43:42doesn't seem to be in line with the

43:45state at this point, but is the state in

43:48line other states in the Southeast?

43:52I I don't I don't want to go beyond the

43:54Southeast because

43:57you know, because when we start looking

44:01at northern states salaries

44:04and salaries are higher, but um just to

44:09compare, I'd like to know, you know, if

44:13we're comparable

44:15to other Southeastern states.

44:18>> So So, we've done

44:20I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt.

44:22>> No.

44:23>> Go ahead.

44:24>> Okay.

44:24>> No, go right ahead.

44:26>> We have done We have done an analysis of

44:29um local government and state government

44:32here in South Carolina. It would be

44:34fairly easy to grab a couple other

44:35states, um and we could provide that

44:39information to you guys.

44:42>> Yeah, and that that's a great question,

44:44and I also Well, I think this is where

44:46we can focus it on Charleston as a city

44:48instead of the state as a whole and and

44:50looking at other metro areas with a

44:52similar cost of living um and a similar

44:55salary range to us

44:57um throughout the Southeast because it

44:59is, you know, I think Charleston is a

45:01more expensive place than a lot of the

45:02rest of the state. Um so, that could be

45:04interesting to compare it kind of from

45:06an apples-to-apples perspective. Like,

45:07if we're looking at Durham, Raleigh, um

45:11Savannah, Charlotte, Richmond, um I

45:15would be interested in in those city

45:17comparisons. Amalia?

45:21>> So, North Carolina has paid leave for

45:23their state employees for 12 weeks.

45:27Um and Virginia has a comprehensive paid

45:32family um

45:34paid family and medical leave program

45:36for for everybody across the state. I

45:38just don't remember how long it is, but

45:40I'll look into that.

45:41>> Thank you.

45:43Yeah.

45:44Good to know.

45:46Okay.

45:48Um All right, any more discussion before

45:50we vote on the motion?

45:56Okay, all in favor.

46:00I.

46:03Okay, any opposed?

46:12Cara, Dr. Cheek, and Jennifer Brown, are

46:14you opposed or do you just need to take

46:16your hands down?

46:21>> In favor.

46:23>> Okay, great. Okay, so passes

46:25unanimously. Um my next question is as

46:28we prepare for our January meeting, um

46:31what I'd like to do is have a series of

46:33presentations um to look at what other

46:36municipalities are doing and what our

46:37options are. Um so my question to you

46:40all, Janet, I'm assuming the Chamber of

46:43Mothers has resources here. Amalia, I'm

46:45assuming Wren has resources here.

46:48Um Lavonda, I don't know if the the Y

46:50has any resources here on child care. Um

46:54but if you have examples that you would

46:58like to present to the committee, I'd

46:59love to start with this committee's

47:01knowledge um and then augment that with

47:03some some national folks too. And if you

47:05have recommendations

47:07on any national organizations that would

47:09be helpful to bring into the

47:10conversation,

47:12um please let me know and we can reach

47:15out to those folks to get the right

47:16point of contacts on the agenda as well.

47:21Okay.

47:24All right, awesome.

47:26Anything else for the good of the order?

47:32All right. Um well guys, thank you so

47:34much. Our ladies, thank you so much. Um

47:36really grateful for your time. Um I love

47:39to run an efficient meeting, so

47:40hopefully you feel like this was 48

47:42minutes um well spent. I think we have a

47:45great path going forward. Um I'm really

47:48excited to work with you all and uh

47:50produce some tangible results.

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