- July 5, 2021
- Posted by: Stratford Team
- Category: Business
I found out I was pregnant just as the pandemic was starting in 2020. As a sole proprietor, without any national paid leave program, that meant I had to plan for my business to take a hit for my maternity time, and then COVID happened. The confluence of a major economic downturn, with a new baby on the way and no safety net was incredibly stressful as a new mom, and a business owner. Thankfully, my husband works for a company that provides paid leave, but many small business owners aren’t as lucky to have a spouse with benefits. We need a national paid family and medical leave program to support self-employed job creators like me.
I own a photography studio in Morgantown. It had just undergone renovations and was newly completed when we had to shut down in March last year. As a pregnant woman, I was high risk, and so I shut down operations to keep myself and my family safe. My mother was also at high risk and had…