abnormal results. and it says that they are typically informed within three days and typically is in quotation marks said that you don't really show how widely the improvements have been adopted or what specific progress has been made in this area. it's kind of hit or miss like so many of the things that we've been hearing about. so i am concerned that you are just going to train primary caregivers to be experts on women's health, maybe that's an interim measure, but it's certainly not the same as having somebody who is qualified in that field. and again, i go back to these clinics that exist say in rural nevada where it's very hard to find somebody who's an expert or even in our urban centers like las vegas where we lack providers. and this is something that we need to address even if you send

them out into the community and then you don't track their results out in the private sector or if you send them out and there are no providers in the private sector, we really have just kind of traded the devil for the witch. we haven't solved the problem. >> i very much appreciate that, congress woman. i want to be clear about one thing. i wasn't suggesting we would send primary care providers to camp for three weeks and then they would be oggyns by any stretch of the imagination. this was more to be in the coordinating role and to be able to provide some basic services but also to make shoo your that people got the services that they needed in a timely fashion and i would just say that our top consultants in women's health of urgent sit would be her middle name, but i will be happy to get back to you about the mammography issue specifically. >> thank you. i yield backing >> wrxt rope, you're recognized for five minutes. >> i thank the chairman. i'm glad it's not three weeks, it took me 30 years of experience to get to the ob-gyn

camp. i'm glad to hear you can't do it in three weeks. we want to as a group here and i think you hear from both sides of the aisle, to be able to go from good to great. to be able to do that though, we have to have information that's accurate and timely. and i looked at the memo today we were sent on the rdus. i know this is not a big thing. i think it's a symptom of what goes on in the va. if you look at a law that was passed in 19, in, 2002 it appears to me when you look at the '68iation the ig did with these five medical centers in boston, houston, indianapolis, philadelphia, that and looked at the staffing levels we're talking about for specialty care services, it's taken 12 years and we still don't know what they are. i mean, this is law was passed in 2002.

and it's 2014 and we're still talking about we don't know what our staffing feeds are. well, that's not complicated. having spent 30 years doing what i did, it's not hard to figure out what your staffing feeds are. if you can't get somebody in to see a cardiologist, you need a cardiologist. you don't need another study or anything to figure that out. i don't understand again did the accountability when this didn't happen for 12 years, and then last week, last friday, we found out that the 80% of the people in senior levels at the va got rewarded for doing a great job. and yet, we completely ignored this metric. it doesn't appear there's any penalty whatsoever for not following the law. am i wrong? why wasn't this done? >> congress man, i can't speak to what happened before i got here. i can speak to the fact that following the ig report, that was taken, the recommendations were taken seriously. we are a year ahead of time.

meeting those recommendations. by the end of had year, we will have productivity standards for all specialties in va. and we will be able to use those moving forward to make decisions about where we need to supplement support for physicians or to provide additional physicians. >> let me just ask the question again. is there any accountability at all? i mean because this is 12 years went by, this information should have been able to you all where you could use it to help prevent what just happened. anyway, i want to also go on to a couple of other things. mr. o'rourke brought up. i totally agree with this. is that really, there are two issues at stake. the backlog is not going to be a big deal. we can fix that one very quickly i think. and today, be i got a call from memphis, tennessee, a physician down there put together in three days with a university of tennessee system with the methodist hospital, they'll see any veteran, primary care or specialty care including oncology in 72 hours.

they can do that. our group can do that. it can be done across the country. so the backlog is very simple to solve. a much more difficult decision is the culture of the va where we go 12 years, we don't follow what the law is, where we reward people at senior levels for doing i don't know what. maybe some of them did a really good job but others clearly did not because we see the failings right now. let me just give you a brief example. i went to my eye doctor today right here in the washington. i had a little retina problem. the doctor said he had been trying to get to the va here the ret nat specialist to the help out. he had a patient that was supposed to see a doctor in january this year with a retina problem. it snowed that day. so they made the next appointment in june, that's this month. well, when the guy finally saw when the doctor saw him at the va, they rushed him over to the ret nat specialist because the guy had a detached retina for

five months he didn't get treated. another call today, this physician i talked to in memphis had a fellow to took eight months to get to an oncologist outside of the va. recommended a biopsy, that took four months. the man has cancer. they probably can't treat it now. that's not -- we cannot have a system ta treats our veterans this way. and we have a system out there, a private physicians who want to help. they want their veterans like me and dr. win strup and others like this young man here, i should show you when we get through today. i want you to see this because they want to help. i think they're there to help. i think their intentions are right. i think your intentions are right. you want to make things better for veterans but we have the second one. the first one, the backlog we can take care of that. i have no doubt in less six months we can get fixed. that second one, the culture in the va is going to take a lot of

work and honesty and transparency from the va senior people so we can help you go from good to great. i yield back, mr. chairman. >> mpg that you very much, doctor. >> >> thank you. >> when you figure the cost as far as putting out services from the va, do yous are consider the savings ie we heard from chris datay in charge confident arts program, actually we're able to save the va about $600,000 during that pilot program for mile and. so do you consider the cost savings, as well or just the cost comparedtively? >> i think when we look at how we manage excess -- excess demand, we need to determine whether we can provide that will service more economically within the va or whether it's better for us to buy that in the community. i think that's an important decision.

we do know the community costs. we can calculate. beat do have the information to determine what it would cost us to hire those physicians and to provide care a. i think if we can do it more economically and at less cost in the community, then that would be an appropriate thing to do. >> but you can considering all the factors, it might cost x for within the va for a certain specialty care, it might seem cost more outside for that same specialty care but when you look at the savings, are with reimbursement, it's more cost efficient to do it outside versus inside. so do you look at the whole cost? >> yes, sir, i think beat do and we will. >> okay. my second question is, of the three key elements of capacity, supply for clinical providers, amount of services providers can deliver, are modern i.t. infrastructure, out of these three, which one poses the greatest challenges to the va?

>> i would say based on our aging infrastructure, our greatest challenges are providing the physicians adequate space to epatients and giving them the support they need to see patients efficiently. it's hard to separate i think i.t. is a challenge, as well. but i think we do have an electronic medical record. it's not a perfect record. it's in the process of evolution and improve. but i think our greatest chals are in support for our physicians and in the space for them to provide care in an efficient fashion. >> and my last question is, when you look at the wait list, i know some facilities have automated system where they call in, it's automated depending on how long it takes them to get through the menu, they might hang up. say the heck with it, they're not going to bother. are they counted into that wait list and if so, how do you -- how can you track them? >> people call in to the va for a number of reasons.

so it's going to be difficult to know what they're calling in for. we do measure, are however, abandonment rates and we do measure time to answer our telephone system. we're working to improve those so that that won't be a problem. >> thank you, mr. chairman. >> dr. win strop? >> mr. chicano. yes, sir. >> so i'm a little confused by interoperability of records. can you help me explain about there is no inner operability? >> well, this is a case where you're both right. the second stage of the so-called meaningful use, this is the series of stepped incentives, right,ing that cms has put in place incentivizing is private sector providers to adopt electronic health records and the like not just to buy the stuff but to the actually use it in such a way as to improve

quality of care. that second stage of meaningful use actually requires the providers be able to share some information with other providers. so you're right that meaningful use is actually a path to getting us to a place where we can share all the information. i think it's fair to say that many providers are finding this challenging. so dr. ban i check is also correct when he says give me a break because if you're thinking about actually just uploading all information from one to another, that's actually much, much steeper and likely a bit far off. i think your original an sherrion that in fact the incentives put in place by the hi-tech act are setting us in the right direction. i wanted to make the point vha is complying with all of those. >> my understanding having spoken to some physicians who do work at va hospitals that they do appreciate the vista medical record. quote and i'm quoting him, the information is all there.

and it seems common sense to me that if the records are integrated, nthat that enhances the integrated care within the system. so within the system doctors can pass this information around. so the concern that was raised in many hearings was the lack of interop ratability with dod and their medical record systems and the billions of dollars that we've not been able to spend in a way that we have interoperability. if you listen to situations and cases where service members and veterans their health care was greatly compromised. and so i've been listening in these hearings and understanding that the challenge with being able to move into opening greater opportunities for our veterans to use access nonva care is this interoperability

challenge, but so that's why i was raising the question. so the it would seem to me that if he woo want to move more in this direction that we're going to have to encourage private physicians and care groups to be able to communicate with the va's record system. >> yes, and so i think your other question or statement was that if this were written into the p c3 contracts, that providers who had met the meaningful use requirements and so forth would get preference or to the extent that they could contract with such providers that would be a good thing. in terms of coordinating care is a very fabulous idea. so we'll take that back, as well. >> thank you. i yield back. >> mr. brown lee. miss titus. mr. jolly? >> sure. >> mr. chairman, just have a very quick follow-up. dr. lynch, i want to go back to the fy 149 appropriations

question i asked you for a point of clarity. i understand you mentioned the va is in the process process of working with outside providers. is that just a general statement or are you suggesting that the demonstration project kong depressionally directed in the fy '149 budget is currently being implemented? >> it is being implemented, congressman. can i get you information on the sites where that is being provided at this time? >> yeah, you certainly could. there are about six or seven of us that wrote a letter to the secretary on may 7th asking for an update on the implementation. i know you've got a lot of letters coming your way right now. but it is a matter of concern because it was done with such specificity. even the criteria were put in the congressional report as to how the centers were to be evaluated. so i just want to make sure we're talking apples and apples here that this is the fy 14. >> let me work with our was office of mental health operations. >> that would be great.

>> get you the information that you need and make sure that we are talking ands and apples. >> sure. i'll leave a copy of the letter. it was may 7th. seven of us signed it. i'll put it in your hand when we leave tonight. appreciate a response. thank you very much. >> miss kirk patrick, five minutes. >> thank you. dr. lynch i just have the two questions. is there a complaint system within the vha something like a hot line that a veteran can call and someone get back to them about their complaint? >> dr. clancy, do you want to take that? >> yes, every facility has a patient advocate. and in fact, they get complaints. they get all kinds of calls, and that is actually tracked in terms of time to resolution and so forth. that -- that all of the patient advocates now come under an office of patient centered care and cultural transformation. so we have begun working with them a bit from the quality and safety side to try to figure out

how could we learn more from what they're hearing because we're noticing that i an number of private sector organizations are taking to heart just how important and useful it can be to learn from the patients themselves. so. >> so is that information looked at at nationally nationwide not just, it doesn't just stay at the local facility? >> yes, there is a national database. >> okay. then my second question is, are you consulting with the vsos on how to engage innovation in the system when it comes to scheduling these appointments? >> we have not been communicating directly with the vsos. i think we certainly have been looking at ways that the vsos can be help us understand how the veterans are perceiving our care and the timeliness of that care. i think there's a huge opportunity there. >> i agree. and you know, chairman miller, i think it might be good to have a hearing where we hear from the

vsos about their suggestions about how to fix this problem. i yield back. thank you so much. >> thank you very much, miss kirk patrick. we do have one hearing that will be coming up in several weeks. it will be specifically geared towards the vsos. and it's at that particular hearing we will invite the secretary to be here to hear their recommendations, as well. " mr. reese. empty custer, mr. o'rourking? mr. waltz. i'm sorry. you're recognized for five minutes. >> again, thank you both for being here and listening to the testimony. i appreciate it. i've sat here almost in this exact same seat for seven and a half years and just like you with the vsos and the va as partners and advocates to get this right for veterans. but i'm going to come back to -- and i oftentimes in those years said i'm staunchest supporter but i'll be your harshest critic when it needs to be. dr. clancy, i brought it up with

several others, you said this is the time to think fundamental change. this is the time to think big. and i found it interesting that you focused, dr. clancy, on thetoriage, which, of course needs to be done with these veterans right now and called what we were talking about a second order question. i would argue had you addressed thattyer, we would have never had phoenix. we would have never had those things. are both of you clinically credentialed? >> i'm not currently, well, not clinically credentialed at this time. i certainly have been for the last. >> can you see patients. >> i cannot see patients, no. >> dr. clancy? >> i haven't. i haven't for a number of years. i've actually looked into what would be required. >> but you're both doctors? >> yes. >> we don't have the enough doctors. so i'm going to say what vietnam veterans of america made this suggestion to you and you said in the question was asked, you haven't contracted with them. this is what they said you need to do. all vhs staff with clinical credentials and training who are

not currently direct service providers need to see patients four days a week. get out of the administrative office and guess see patients. i would think you would be turning over every stone to find a physician who is already in the system. it may not seem like a fair question. but the ability to call fundamental cultural change a second order question and we'll get to it when we get this done, you can be multitask. get that done. that is, of course, a priority. but the not addressing this we're going to come back here again. and that is more of a statement. and believe me, it pains me that we're at this point. it pains me of all the good work we do gets erased about by this it, but it once again confirms to me, this is cultural. it's leadership. it's structural. and it runs deep. i yield back. >> thank you very much, mr. waltz. following up with your line of questioning, be how many physicians are there in the system who don't see patients? that are in administrative

roles? >> i don't know, mr. chairman. >> would you find that out for us? >> yes, sir. >> thank you very much. in your testimony you mentioned that or in answer to a question that somebody had about how much money was being spent to help solve the backlog problem, i think the number that you used was about $312 million being made available for your access initiative. you mentioned the funds were essentially located. can you give me an idea where the funds were supposed to be spent? >> i will get that information for you. >> is the $312 million part of the plan, $450 million carryover that the department had already budgeted for 2015? >> i can't answer that, mr. chairman. i will get the information for you. >> i can answer it. >> it is. >> it is. and i guess the big question is, almost half a billion dollars sitting there in the bank and

why do we have a backlog the size of the one we've got? how did we get here? i mean, i don't think anybody even to this day knows how the culture became so corrupt that people would falsify record and in some cases i believe criminally, that we would cause veterans to wait months and years, that we would -- look, that's $500 million for carry over this year. we've had a couple of years just recently that about been a billion dollars carried over. and i don't think the public understands, the people are running around saying more money, more people, be more money, more people. $500 million sitting there that the could have solved this and nobody within the central office or the department was blowing the whistle saying we needed to spend that. it's almost as if they were trying to keep it for a nest

egg. for next year. because if you carry it over, then it goes into the base budget. and we've got to fund it again. and that's how the bureaucracy grows. >> rehouse homeland security committee will investigate the influx of shorter and across the border. watch tomorrow. you can join the conversation. the house and senate have passed different bills to try to address some of the problems at

medical centers. a conference committee will try to work out the differences between the measures. the live coverage begins at 2:00 eastern on c-span. >> religion is a positive -- powerful identity organization. part of society is figuring out who is us and them. it answers this question the easily. me, gopray and eat like to the same church as i do, you are with us. if not, you are with them. you can see how that mindset can easily lead to extremism, marginalization. ira mine people that religion may be the most powerful form of identity formation. is violence.ful

if you are fighting alongside me, you are us. >> book tv. forill take your calls three hours. in the months ahead, ron paul and the former chair of the commission. this month, we discuss the forgot man. a new history of the great depression. start reading and join others. book tv is television for serious readers.

summitwhite house held a that looks at the challenges that families face in the workplace. we will hear from the president and vice president. the department of labor. it has had a fantastic team. valerie is right. we all have stories. represent,you thousands have a story. i have a story.

when i had children, i had a very high-pressure job. there were a lot of time commitments to the job. i had a boss who saw that i was struggling a little bit and she rescheduled meetings around me and made sure that she changed couldhedule so that i have my responsibilities as a parent and worker. she changed the work culture to accommodate parents. as the secretary said, i felt like i won the boss lottery. we should all have work situations where people recognize that when we are good workers and parents, that is best for the bottom line. and that is so much of what they

-- today is about. we are making the case for how improving working conditions for families is best for the bottom line. parents and we who hadrd from parents to put sick children on a bus and we have heard about parents struggling with the decisions of going to work. parents are talking about how and have waited until 5:00 ran home because they know that their child does not have health care. today it is not just about

taking the conversation. it is about changing the country. we will do that with everybody here. everybody here is staying committed and we have fantastic academics and advocates. they recognize how critical it is to have workplace rules that will hold them compete in the 21st century. i want to say a few things to those who have helped put this conference together. the ford foundation and the sloan foundation. -- these people are leaders they make sure that we can make change. we have to learn from these models.

we will have a great day today. beginning to the and crew the quality of lives for all. it is my great honor and privilege to introduce to you biden and joe biden. these are people who work every families and, we are so thrilled to have them start out the conference. [applause] [cheers] >> good morning, everyone. >> good morning.

>> i think i need some of what tom perez was drinking. he had that energy, didn't he? thank you, neera, for that kind introduction. everyone here knows the challenges facing working families. i myself can visibly recall teaching full time, getting a master's degree, and raising three young children. even though i had a lot of support and resources, it was still a lot at once. and those kinds of challenges have only increased for today's working families. today, in 3/4 of families, all parents work, whether it is a single-parent family or both parents working. women are nearly half of our workforce, but too many women still earn less than men and often face barriers.

on top of an already complicated childcare schedules and community obligations, many working families are also caregivers for aging parents. more and more companies know that they need to find ways to address those challenges so that they can attract and retain talent. they also know that people now choose one job over another because it is in the best interests of their families. last month i was in seattle for a discussion with business leaders and employees to hear more about some of the creative ways they are addressing these challenges and attracting and retaining top talent. what i heard there was pretty simple. employers need to think more than just the eight hours a day that an employee is sitting at his or her job. they should also think about the stresses that employees face outside of work -- child care, aging parents, long commutes.

if an employer can find creative ways to ease some of those stresses, employees can be more productive at the time they are at work. what i heard from employees was also clear. when they felt their workplaces valued and appreciated them, they were up eight and enthusiastic about their jobs. they were committed to their employers come and they saw that their job was not just a place where they went to work for eight hours a day, but a place where they were invested in the company's mission. one of the companies was a software company that works hard to create a flexible culture that recognizes the competing demands on its employees. jamie, a project manager, told us that heard days were filled with organizing meetings and

making sure her team is getting everything done. but because of the company's no-meeting-friday policy, she was able to enroll her twins in a four-day kindergarten next year and was able to start friday fun days this summer. rei was another company that participated in the discussion. they allow for flexible commuting so employees can go in earlier and miss rush hour. i am sure that is something everybody here can relate to coming in to washington. as an outdoors company, they want to work as a culture to encourage employees to live healthy lives, what they refer to as nature nurtures. they encourage employees to go

outside, go for a hike, and engage in activities they enjoy. it has also discussed other ways to address many of the challenges every working family faces, offering on-site day care, providing, a set amount of paid leave, and connecting workers with elder care programs. underscoring all these policies was another theme -- employers should trust employees, and trust that these solutions make workers happier and more productive. it is important. the american family has changed. when we think of caregivers, we

think of a mother caring for her child, but that image does not reflect today's realities, particularly those in the sandwich generation, individuals who are caring for their children at the same time they are caring for their parents. like so many americans, both my husband, joe, and i have had first-hand experience of caring for our parents in the final years of their lives. i can vividly recall helping care for joe's parents, both of whom came to live with us in the last months of their lives. but the roles of caregivers in today's society is expanding beyond children caring for parents, a role that reminds me of two brothers i met last fall, kyle and bret. kyle is an army specialist who was injured in afghanistan in 2012. during his recovery, bret's employer encouraged him to make

most of the company's leave policy. they kept his job open so that he could go and care for his brother. stories like theirs are why this convening is so important. everyone participating in this important discussion can contribute innovative ideas to help make life a little better for our working families. whether it is resources and flexibility for employees acting as caregivers or mentoring for women are offering flexible working arrangements, all of us continue to think creatively about the workplace of the future so that we can ensure that every working american has an equal opportunity to succeed and care for our children.

that is what i know our next speaker wakes up every morning thinking about. [laughter] [applause] it is my great pleasure to introduce my husband, vice president joe biden. thank you. [cheers] >> thank you. thank you. thank you. thank you. before jill leaves, i am sure glad she took me to work today. [laughter] tom, i think you have -- i do not know, i was just out at starbucks' headquarters, and i think you got the double jolt in the morning.

i don't know, man. he is that way at midnight, too, and that is why i love working with him, rocking on jobs for the future. valerie, thank you, you have been a great friend, but you and tina have never let up on this subject. you have always focused on what matters. it matters a great, great deal, and, neera, you do an incredible job, but you do an incredible job with everything you touch. it is a pleasure to work with you.

look, let me begin by stating the obvious. sometimes it is not always so obvious. every single circumstance is different. every one of you in this audience has a different circumstance, different opportunity, different problems. how many of you have children out there? raise your hand. in every one of your cases, there are different pressures. they are not always the same. they are not always the same. the fact is the fact that you are here, the vast majority of you, you are among the lucky ones. you're among the ones were educated. you are among the ones who have options, mostly. you are the ones who generally make enough money that you can get some help in caring for your children or your parents. even if you do not have the salary to do that, you are the

ones that know your way around. you know the existence of programs to help your elderly parents or your children. you are the ones in the communities -- will not speak about much of them today, as i look at the agenda -- but there is a whole lot of things that are going on and we have been working on for, in my case, for over 35 years, to ameliorate the pressure on families. and that is everything from after-school programs. they make a gigantic difference. it is a government program. [applause] we have millions of turnkey children, going home after school, 3:00, 3:30, in circumstances that are not always -- i was raised in a grade school by the nuns. they say, you know, temptation. well, you know -- [laughter]

i do not care how good your child is, but turning on the key to get in the house in a safe neighborhood, it is still a concern. so there is a whole lot of things we are not going to be talking in detail about, but the vast majority of single moms and i might add dads do not have these opportunities. [applause] each one of you here, if you are honest, and you all are honest, i mean this sincerely, you know how difficult it is to do your job, advance in your job, and be the parent or caregiver for your parents that you want to be. you have been raised, 99% of you, with the notion that your first and foremost obligation is to your family, whether it is your parents in distress or your

children. and it is really difficult. a lot has to do with the personal choices that we make as to how we allocate our time versus relative to our careers. i do not think anyone participating here makes any moral judgment about any of the choices people make as long as they are conscious choices with opportunities, and our job, it seems to me, is to provide as many opportunities so that the choices that are always going to be the choices that have to be made all our at least more rational, at least with more options. but there are a lot of factors and a lot of players that can have a significant ameliorating impact on the difficult choices, women primarily, but men also have to raise their children.

do you have an extended family that can help you? that is a big factor. can you afford safe and nurturing daycare? what organizations outside and including your school, outside your school, are available from your community, the ywca? we owe you. you do any credible -- i spent the bulk of my career in the judiciary committee. there is a corollary between children in trouble and having access to boys' and girls' clubs, ywca's, ymca's. you got to give children choices. [applause] children basically want to do the right thing, but the peer pressure is overwhelming. sometimes they need an escape, an excuse, when mom and dad are not present. you all know these things. but one of the factors we are talking about today is also that can be incredibly ameliorating,

but how understanding is your employer? how understanding? lastly, what if anything can the federal government do to help, and i say lastly, because all these other things that are out there in the community, if they're working really well, including employers, is listening others' need for a minimum wage, for the whole things that you need, people have been working on for their whole careers, but there is a lot that can be done. the examples that jill gave. your want to discuss all these things today, but as we used to say in the senate, as a point of privilege, i will say -- he has a moderately expensive suit on. he is vice president of the

united states of america. he still makes a lot of money as vice president, and i do, by the way. i do. [laughter] don't hold it against me, that i do not own a single stock or bond, that i have no savings account, but i got a great pension and a good salary. [applause] for real. sometimes we talk about struggle. i struggle, compared to the way i grew up and the way people are trying to go through things -- here is the point i want to make. i've been really, really fortunate, and jill as a community college professor, she has seen parents trying to secure an education while raising their family, and many times being the victim of domestic violence in the process. as a military mom and to the great work she and the first lady had been doing, she knows the stress on military families facing as they struggle through multiple deployments, caring for

returning veterans, coping with financial and emotional pressures. these are real. these are real. and, you know, she knows what you know, that no family is alike, no struggle the same, new opportunities are identical, but all families, headed by two parents or a single mom or dad, share the same goals for themselves and for their children. you cannot equalize it all, but we sure can do a lot better. they want to feel comfortable. they want to feel safe. he wanted be in a secure home with a secure neighborhood. they want to send their kids to college. they want to care for their mom and dad if they have to. and put aside just a little bit and maybe there will be some left for retirement. they want to achieve these goals without having to sacrifice all of the moments that really matter.

my generation, and obviously i'm a lot older than you, you can see that, but all kidding aside, my generation, as i was in college, coming out of college in the late 1960's, it was it was not quantity time, it was quality time. give me a break. [laughter] give me a break. [applause] there is not one important thing my son or daughter have said to me that does not matter -- let's go fishing -- and, parents, you know it to be true. the most crippled thing your children ask to you are those moments that you do not anticipate, moments that occur when you are reading a story at

night, when you get home and have to climb in bed with them, even though they are already asleep and you pet them. [laughter] no -- one of the great memories of my daughter who is a grown woman, and a social worker, it was the smell of snow coming home from work. you know what i am talking about. those things matter. not all of us have the kind of flexibility that i had. not all of us had the opportunity, not all of us had that outside help. there is no substitute for being there, no amount of compensation that would replace being physically, emotionally, or mentally present when your child needs you, but we know there are going to be this times and we are not going to be there. it is just a fact of life. when i lost my wife and daughter in a car accident shortly after

i got elected, before i was sworn into the senate, i had a whole heck of a lot of help. i have an incredible family. my sister is the originator of the phrase in my family, "if you have to ask, it is too late," and i mean that sincerely. "if you have to ask, it is too late." i came home from the hospital and my sister had already moved into my home. no, with her husband, who gave up his job. i am serious. who has that? who has that kind of help? my mother was nearby. my brothers. they all helped me raise my children. but i was a single father for five years, and i want to tell you come up all the help i had, and i was making a good salary, i was a u.s. senator, i was making a salary a lot more than -- $42,000 a year, and that was then. the average salary then was closer to $19,000.

i was doing well, and i had all this help, and the overwhelming goodwill of an entire state that wrapped its arms around me and my children. i used to think of myself, i have a secretary in delaware who had three children and who is single, and her child is going to be held to the exact same standard my child is, under the law. and how in god's name did she do what i was able to do, and i was finding it hard, really hard. but i got lucky. i still had to find my way. my sons were 3 and 4. i would leave for washington every day, i could almost hear the fear in their voices, are you going, daddy?

they wanted to know that i was coming back, that everything was going to be ok. to demonstrate to them, but not really, because i needed them. i made a point to start, i thought i was only going to stay for six months, start the commute that and forth every day. 8,000 round trips later -- not a joke -- [laughter] 8,000. [applause] really and truly, by the way, i needed to do that. i needed to do that, just for me. they helped raise me as much as i helped raise them. here's the point -- what i found out and employers can help on this, that it really matters that even if it is only like i get home at night and after five years no man serves one grade level, let alone two, and when jill came along and basically saved all our lives, i would take them home and i would get home late, by about 8:00,

and she would keep the boys up and they would have their dessert while i would have my dinner. i know michelle would not like that -- [laughter] but it was healthy dessert. [laughter] and look, look, you do it. you go up and you lie in bed with them, whatever your tradition is. in our case we would say prayers, like my grandpa would, and they are the things i remember. when they woke up in the morning, it was no ozzie and harriet, not all the family kind of stuff where we sat and had breakfast together. i was shaving and they would come in and have whatever the on their mind today, we would go upstairs, i have coffee and they ate their breakfast, because

young kids can only hold an important idea for about 12 hours. [laughter] no, no, for real. you miss it, it is gone. you miss it, it is gone. it matters to them and to you. look, nothing is more important to me than being able to be there, but i have this overwhelming luxury. i did not have any one boss. i had a million people in delaware who were my boss, and they were pretty understanding. i sincerely mean it. i missed my first six years -- i was one of the lowest percentage of people voting. i never missed a vote that was a deciding vote, and most were procedural votes. so everybody said, the other team was doing the right thing, they were attacking me on tv,

which makes sense, which said, would you hire a man who only shows up 87% of the time? on the advice of -- and i tell you this about how people think, over the advice of the experts -- i looked into the camera and i said, look, it is true, i missed whatever it was, 13%, 15% of the votes, and if you elect me again, i will do it again. no, i am serious. i will never visit a vote to make a difference, but if i have a choice between a procedural vote and my child's parent-teacher meeting, i will go to the meeting. [applause] at this point, it is not about me. look at the luxury i had. how many of you would like to be able to do that? [applause] i am no different than any one of you. i am not trying to say this is,

joe biden, you did -- no, i had the ability to do it. you want to do it. and i could make a choice, and i was confident the people in my state would understand, because i was confident, and the reason i tell you the stories i think that is how almost every american thinks. they think if they only could, if they only could, they would. so, folks, look, the fact of the matter is there are too many people where it comes down to making the choice between doing that parent-teacher's meeting, going to the championship game, or showing up at that debate or being there just when your child is sick, having to choose between doing that and their job. not one time -- but like many of you, my family has been an incredible consumer of health care costs. my sons were critically injured. my daughter was in traction for a long time.

but we had the option, we could choose who could stay home. i could operate from my home, assuming there was not a critical vote. the point is, those kinds of choices, most times it comes down to not losing your job or not, it comes to the subtle things, if i do not stay and finish the project and do not go to my daughter's parents night, they are going to think i do not really care about my job. your employer is not demanding you do it. if i do not stay -- look, i have had some really incredible people working with me over the years. w had something like 25 rhodes scholars, or marshall scholars, i had a law firm of 65 people as chairman of judiciary committee.

almost everyone graduated in the top 5% of the class. really smart, smart people, ambitious people. i remember during the really difficult hearings, a hearing i was having conducting on the supreme court, a controversial hearing, judge bork, and one of the young men who had done most of the research in the background on judge bork, he was having difficulty at home. he was having difficulty because he was spending so little time at home for the previous six months in preparation, having difficulty in his marriage. the data hearing started, i had a guy who was chief of staff, a wonderful time, he said so and so has a problem. tell him if he comes in to work he is fired. [laughter] not a joke. i was not being noble.

it was the right thing to do, but beyond that, he could to it from home. he could be on the phone. he could let us know. and he had to be assured that it would not affect his advancement. that is all employers have to do sometimes, to let you know that these subtle choices -- you do not have to have some massive policy, particularly if they are smaller. no one -- and the other piece about what jill pointed out about trust -- you know, folks, we make such a mistake, sometimes, i'm not quite sure why, but guess what-- trust is usually returned. trust is usually returned. i have a policy. i just hired on three very

high-profile people. the first thing i sat with them when i hired them, i said, look, here's the deal. if you ever have any problem at home, no matter what it is, you don't have to tell me what it is. sometimes it's embarrassing. my child has a drug problem. i'm taking him to counseling. a vast majority of parents face that. i'm having difficulty. my wife and i are having a problem. my father is -- you don't have to give me an explanation. just say, look, i need the time. i need the time. no explanation. you have no idea, i guess you do have an idea how much not only is the right thing to do but how much loyalty that engenders, how much response you get. [applause] and by the way, those employers, corporate folks out there, you know when it's being abused. you don't need a road map.

and so it's a lot easier to trust. people don't abuse trust. if you really trust them, by and large, these are the things that i think all employers can do. now, it's true that many times problems are much bigger. company-wide policies have to be made. decisions on flexible schedules, expanded leave policies and telecommunicating, and on-the-job training and education. these are all points you will discuss in some detail today. i wish i could stay, i redo. i wish i could stay and be in this conference. the point i want to make today is that all the corporate --

i mentioned this because she is still a great friend of mine and valeriehat area -- knows her well. she was my chief counsel. she was with me a long time. she is one of the reasons why we were able to successfully pass the violence against women act. before she left in 1996 when her first child was born and sheryl sandberg described in her book, when i asked cynthia to return when i became vice president as my chief counsel at the white house, she was concerned she would not be able to continue to have time for family. are a little bit older. we worked it out. her experience

and talents which were badly needed. as her employer i benefited as much as she did. we were certain should left by a certain time so she could be home. it was not a hard thing. there is no loss of productivity in my office. cynthia for taken five hours a day. the point is she was able to do it from home. when the kids watch to the door which was important to her -- walked through the door which was important to her, she was there. she was a connection with the office and we made a rule. no matter how important it was she did not get any text messages during dinner because it was an important time. here's the deal. you all know it. study after study confirms my experience. family-friendly policies reduce turnover and boost performance and boost productivity. speaking to cynthia and some of the other women in my shop with

children, they are the 1 -- reason i was able to read the domestic violence law in the first place. [applause] i cannot leave without saying something about the violence against women act. nearly one third of the victims of the mastech violence lose their jobs because of the impact on their employers. there are real impacts on employers. what happens in the work lace. disrupting, britney -- reckoning -- breaking the windows, threatening coworkers, it happens. and so you can understand why sayoyers in big operations we do not need this. this is disruptive. the total cost to the economy

and the cost to the county according to the cdc is about a billion dollars in lost productivity and health care. that is not the total cost to the whole economy which is much higher. employers can and many are come i was going to list them but my staff said do not listing -- start listing because you will lose -- leave someone out. companies arejor making a big difference because the develop policies to help the victims keep their jobs and stay safe. it takes effort on the part of the company. i would urge you at another time but i think you cannot talk opportunity for women unless you talk about dealing with in the work environment the violence against them that occurs, domestic violence.

i hope employers will look at some of your fellow companies that have done and provided progressive environments for victims against mastech violence. you will hear a lot more today. many of you are putting these policies in place. i want to close by thanking you for everything you do for working families and your companies and your communities and your company. we may need our policies and you will talk about them. an awful lot of this can be done just by subtle but nonetheless significant understanding of the , particularly single moms and some singled dads have to deal with. iq for caring so much about our kids. thank you for being able to make sure that particularly women

have the opportunity to meet their potential and every one of their expectations. god bless you. [applause] thanks. thank you. [applause] president obama talked about some of the challenges facing working families as part of the white house summit. his remarks are 30 minutes. >> hey. thank you. thank you, everybody. thank you.

thank you. this crowd looks fired up. everybody have a seat. you look like you have been busy. i know that is right. good afternoon, everybody. have a seat. i love you back. i do. welcome to the white house summit on working families. us.thanks for joining i know that for most of you you are taking time off of work or here and ioth to be know that is a sacrifice and i know just juggling schedules can be tough.

that is one of the reasons we are here today. i want to thank our cohosts, secretary of labor tom perez. give him a big round of applause. everyone at the center for american progress for the great work they did. thanks to the members of congress who are participating especially nancy pelosi and members of the democratic women's working group. and a longtime friend and champion of families and women and veterans, connie milstein. we could not have pulled this off without connie's great i walked over to to ipotle's for lunch. havoc. a lot of

i went there with four new them isof mine. one of a father of a four-year-old and a two-month-old who has worked with his wife to come up with a flexible plan where he works through four days a week. she works three or four days a week. the reason is as roger put he isis important that able to bond with these kids just as much as his wife is. lisa and iard from had twins who were prematurely born. thrive but able to was also able to be promoted and succeed in her company.

and be on a slower track while maintaining that life-family balance. worth applauding. york worksg from new at a nursing home and she has she wasr children and most interested in talking about wasfact when her son it discovered had curvature of the spine, she had health care she could count on. otherwise there was no way she could do with it. her benefits on the job were good enough that she could use some vacation time when he had to go to the doctor. ,nd then shelby from denver shelby has a fan club here. that talked about the fact on her job it has been a little more challenging. some classes with

her children and their helping to explain master. on the other hand she has got an aging parent. when he had to go to the doctor they do not have a policy to -- of paid family leave. fordad had to get on a bus eye surgery because she did not -- could not afford to take the time off. but what bound us all together was the recognition that work its us a sense of place and dignity as well as income and it is critically important. family is also the bedrock of our lives and we do not want a society in which folks are having to make a choice between those two things. there are better decisions we can make that are not so good as

a society to support this balance between work and family. most of us, most of our days consist of work to my family, and not much else. constantlyes are interacting with each other. when we are with our family sometimes we're thinking about work. -- at work work we're thinking about family. that is pretty universal experience. true even when you are president. i am lucky that my daughters are a bit older by the time i became president. a worldhad to meet leader with cheerios stuck to my pants. that has not happened. because we live above the store, so to speak. i have a very short commute.

as a consequence we have been able to organize ourselves to have dinner with michelle and the girls almost every night. that is the first time we have been able to do that in our lives. move-in -- moved into the white house i was away a lot. sometimes with work and sometimes with campaigning. michelle was working full-time and was at home with the responsibility all too often of dealing with everything that the girls needed and so we understand how lucky we are now because there was a big chunk of time when we were doing what so many of you have to deal with everyday area that is figuring out how to make this whole thing work. a lot of americans are not as lucky as we have been. it is hard sometimes just to get createdbusiness has jobs for 51 consecutive months. -- new jobs.

we know someone who is looking for work. and there are a lot of people who are working harder than ever but cannot seem to get ahead and pay all the bills at the end of the month. despite the fact that our and those ofrown us at the top have done very well. the average income has not gone up or 15 years in any meaningful way. that means that relative to 15 years ago a lot of families are not that much better off. the sacrifices they make for their families go beyond just missing family dinner. you look at something like work lace flexibility. this is so important to our family. this was so important to our family when i was away because of malia or sasha got sick or the babysitter did not show up it was michelle who got the an employer who

understood if she needed to leave work in the middle of the day or change her schedule suddenly. when she applied for the job she brought sasha who was about six months in her car seat into the interview. just to kind of explain this is what you will be dealing with if you hire me. thato they signed up for and that flexibility made all the difference to our families. a lot of working moms and dads cannot do that. they do not have the leverage, they are not being recruited necessarily where they can dictate terms of employment. if they need to bring their mom to the doctor or take an afternoon off to see wouldkids school play it mean them losing income they cannot afford to lose. even when working from home is doable it is often not an option. even though studies show

flexibility makes workers happier and raise productivity. same goes with paid family leave. a lot of jobs do not offer it. a when a new baby arrives or parent get sick workers have to make painful decisions about whether they can afford to be there when their families need them the most. many women cannot get a paid day off to give birth. bar. you pretty low would think. that we should be able to take care of. for many hourly workers taking just a few days off can mean losing their job. even though unpaid family leave is available if you cannot pay

the idea ofready taking days off unpaid may mean you cannot make the rent payment or the mortgage payment. or look at child care. in most countries it costs -- most parts of the country a cost -- it costs thousands of dollars a year. in some states decent childcare tuition.e than college i got a letter from a woman in minnesota whose kid's re-school is so expensive it cost more than her monthly mortgage payment. she made a determination to make that sacrifice for her kids. a lot of working families cannot make that sacrifice. countries their other that know how to do childcare well. science. orrocket

look at the minimum wage. occupations disproportionately represented by women. when the 8 million americans with benefits -- would benefit if we raise the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. we are not just talking about young people on their first job. the average worker who would benefit from an increase in the minimum wage is 35 years old. many have kids, a majority are women. and right now, many full-time minimum wage workers are not making enough to keep their children out of poverty. so these are just a few of the challenges that working parents face. and every day, i hear from parents all across the country. they are doing everything right -- they are working hard, they are living responsibly, they are taking care of their children, they're participating in their community -- and these letters can be heartbreaking, because at the end of the day it doesn't feel like they're getting ahead.

and all too often, it feels like they're slipping behind. and a lot of the time, they end up blaming themselves thinking, if i just work a little harder -- if i plan a little better, if i sleep a little bit less, if i stretch every dollar a little bit farther -- maybe i can do it. and that thought may have crossed the minds of some of the folks here from time to time. part of the purpose of this summit is to make clear you're not alone. because here's the thing: these problems are not typically the result of poor planning or too little diligence on the parts of moms or dads, and they cannot just be fixed by working harder or being an even better parent. [applause] all too often, they are the results of outdated policies and old ways of thinking.

family leave, childcare, workplace flexibility, a decent wage -- these are not frills, they are basic needs. they shouldn't be bonuses. they should be part of our bottom line as a society. that's what we're striving for. [applause] parents who work full-time should earn enough to pay the bills, and they should be able to head off to work every day knowing that their children are in good hands. workers who give their all should know that if they need a little flexibility, they can have it -- because their employers understand that it's hard to be productive if you've got a sick kid at home or a childcare crisis. talented, hard-working people should be able to say yes to a promotion or a great new opportunity without worrying about the price that their family will pay. there was a new poll by nielsen's that found that nearly half of all working parents say they have turned down a job not

because they didn't want it, but because it would put too much of a burden on their families. when that many members of our workforce are forced to choose between a job and their family, something's wrong. and here is a critical point: all too often, these issues are thought of as women's issues, which i guess means you can kind of scoot them aside a little bit. at a time when women are nearly half of our workforce, among our most skilled workers, are the primary breadwinners in more families than ever before, anything that makes life harder for women makes life harder for families and makes life harder for children. [applause] when women succeed, america succeeds, so there's no such thing as a women's issue. [applause]

there's no such thing as a women's issue. this is a family issue and an american issue -- these are commonsense issues. [applause] this is about you too, men. men care about having high-quality childcare. dad's rearrange their schedules to make it to teacher meetings and school plays, just like moms. although somebody pointed out to me -- this is a useful insight -- that when dads say, yes, i've got to leave early to go to the parent-teacher conference, everybody in the office says, oh, isn't that nice.

[laughter] and then, when women do it, everybody is all like, is she really committed to the job? so there can be a double standard there. [applause] but sons help care for aging parents. a whole lot of fathers would love to be home for their new baby's first weeks in the world. people ask me what do i love most about being president, and it's true air force one is on the list. [laughter] the truman balcony has a really nice view. [laughter] but one of the -- i was telling folks the other day that one of the best perks about being president is anybody will hand you their baby -- here. [laughter]

so i get this baby fix like two or three times a week. but the reason it's so powerful is because i remember taking the night shift when malia was born and when sasha was born, and being up at two in the morning changing diapers and burping them, and singing to them and reading them stories, and watching sports center once in a while, which i thought was good for their development. [laughter] it was. we want them to be well-rounded. [laughter] but the point is, i was lucky enough to be able to take some time off so that i was there for the 2:00 a.m. feeding and the soothing, and just getting to know them and making sure they knew me.

and that bond is irreplaceable. and i want every father and every child to have that opportunity. but that requires a society that makes it easier for us to give folks that opportunity. [applause] so the bottom line is 21st-century families deserve 21st-century workplaces. [applause] and our economy demands them, because it's going to help us compete. it's going to help us lead. and that means paid family leave, especially paid parental leave. [applause] there is only one developed country in the world that does not offer paid maternity leave, and that is us. and that is not the list you want to be on by your lonesome. it's time to change that, because all americans should be able to afford to care for their families.

[applause] it means high-quality early education. we know that the investment we make in those early years pays off over a child's entire lifetime. and these programs give parents a great place to know that their kids are thriving while they're at work. other countries know how to do this. if france can figure this out, we can figure it out. [applause] all our kids need to benefit from that early enrichment. it means treating pregnant workers fairly, because too many are forced to choose between their health and their job. [applause] right now, if you're pregnant you could potentially get fired for taking too many bathroom breaks -- clearly from a boss who has never been pregnant --

or forced unpaid leave. that makes no sense. congress should pass the pregnant workers fairness act without delay. [applause] speaking of congress, by the way -- (laughter) -- >> booo -- >> no, don't boo, vote. [applause] as long as congress refuses to act on these policies, we're going to need you to raise your voices. we need you to tell congress don't talk about how you support families, actually support families. don't talk the talk. we want you to walk the walk.

in the meantime, if congress will not act, we're going to need mayors to act. we'll need governors and state legislators to act. we need ceos to act. and i will promise you, you will have a president who will take action to support working families. [applause] the good news is you don't have to do it alone and i don't have to do it alone. now that's part of the purpose of this summit is to recognize that there's all kinds of exciting stuff going on around the country. we just have to make sure that we lift up conversations that are taking place at the kitchen table every single day. some businesses are already taking the lead, knowing that family-friendly policies are good business practices. it's how you keep talented employees. that's how you build loyalty and inspire your workers to go the extra mile for your company. some of those businesses are

represented here today. so jetblue, for example, has a flexible, work-from-home plan in place for its customer service representatives. they found it led to happier and more productive employees, and it lowered their costs, which translated into higher profits and lower ticket prices for their customers. it was good business. in 2007, google realized that women were leaving the company at twice the rate that men left -- and one of the reasons was that the maternity leave policy wasn't competitive enough. so they increased paid leave for new parents -- moms and dads -- to five months. and that helped to cut the rate of women leaving the company in half. good business sense. cisco estimates that by letting their employees telecommute, they save more than $275 million each year. they say it's the main reason why they're rated one of the best places to work in america.

so it's easy to see how policies like this make for better places to work. there's also a larger economic case for it. the strength of our economy rests on whether we're getting the most out of our nation's talent, whether we're making it possible for every citizen to contribute to our growth and prosperity. we do better when we field an entire team, not just part of a team. and the key to staying competitive in the global economy is your workforce, is your talent. right now, too many folks are on the sidelines who have the desire and the capacity to work, but they're held back by one obstacle or another. so it's our job to remove those obstacles -- help working parents, improve job training, improve early childhood education, invest in better infrastructure so people are getting to work safely. just about everything i do as president is to make sure that we're not leaving any of our nation's talent behind. that's what this summit is all about.

>> working families love you, mr. president. >> well, thank you. so we're seeing businesses set a good examples. we've got states who are setting a good example. california, rhode island, and new jersey all gave workers paid family leave. connecticut offers paid sick days and so does new york city. [applause] since i asked congress to raise the minimum wage last year -- they've been a little slow, shockingly, but 13 states have taken steps to raise it on their own. [applause] in my state of the union address this year, i asked mayors and governors and ceos -- do what you can to raise your workers' wages, and a lot of them are. a lot of them are doing it. because even if republicans in

congress refuse to budge on this issue this year, everybody knows america deserves a raise, including republican voters out there. there are a lot of them who support it. and i've said i will work with anybody -- democrat or republican -- to increase opportunities for american workers. and nancy pelosi is ready to work. [applause] now, many of these issues, they're not partisan until they get to washington. back home, to folks sitting around the kitchen table, this isn't partisan. nobody says, i don't know, i'm not sure whether the republican platform agrees with paid family leave. they're thinking, i could really use a couple of paid days off to take care of dad, regardless of what their party affiliation is. so even as we're waiting for congress, whenever i can act on

my own, i'm going to. that's why we raised the minimum wage for employees of federal contractors. [applause] nobody who cooks our troops' meals or washes their dishes should have to live in poverty. that's a disgrace. that's why i ordered tom perez, our secretary of labor, to review overtime protections for millions of workers to make sure they're getting the pay that they deserve. [applause] that's why i signed an executive order preventing retaliation against federally contracted workers who share their salary information or raise issues of unequal compensation --because i think if you do the same work, you should get the same pay and you should be able to enforce it, which is why congress should pass the paycheck fairness act today for all workers and not just federally-contracted workers.

[applause] and yes, that's why i fought to pass the affordable care act, to give every american access to high-quality affordable care no matter where they work. so far, over 8 million people have enrolled in plans through the aca. millions with preexisting conditions have been prevented or have been confident that their insurance companies have not been able to block them from getting health insurance. and by the way, women are no longer charged more for being women. they're getting the basic care they need, including reproductive care. and millions are now free to take the best job for their families without worrying about losing their health care. today, i'm going to sign a presidential memorandum directing every agency in the federal government to expand access to flexible work schedules, and giving employees the right to request those flexible work schedules. [applause]

because whether it's the public sector or the private sector, if there's a way to make our employees more productive and happier, every employer should want to find it. and to help parents trying to get ahead, i'm going to direct my secretary of labor, tom perez, to invest $25 million in helping people who want to enroll in jobs programs, but don't currently have access to the childcare that they need to enroll in those job training programs. [applause] we're going to make it easier for parents to get the training they need to get a good job. so we're going to do everything we can to create more jobs and more opportunity for americans. and then, let me just close by saying that i was interviewed in the run up to this on friday. somebody asked, well, it's well-known that women are more likely to vote for democrats -- to which i said, women are smarter.

this is true. [laughter] [applause] but they said, so isn't this working families summit political? and i said, no, i take this personally. i was raised by strong women who worked hard to support my sister and me. [applause] i saw what it was like for a single mom who was trying to go to school and work at the same time. and i remember her coming home and having to try to fix us dinner, and me saying, are we eating that again? and she saying, you know what, buddy, i really don't want to hear anything out of you right now, because i've got to go do some homework after this. and i remember times where my mom had to take some food stamps to make sure that we had enough nutritious food in the house, and i know what she went

through. i know what my grandmother went through, working her way up from a secretary to the vice president of a bank. but she should have run the bank, except she hit a glass ceiling and was training people who would leapfrog ahead of her year after year. i know what that's like. i've seen it. i take this personally, because i'm the husband of a brilliant woman who struggled to balance work and raising our girls when i was away. and i remember the stresses that were on michelle, which i'm sure she'll be happy to share with you later today. [laughter] and most of all, i take it personally, because i am the father of two unbelievable young ladies. [applause] and i want them to be able to have families. and i want them to be able to

have careers. and i want them to go as far as their dreams will take them. and i want a society that supports that. and i take this personally as the president of the country that built the greatest middle class the world has ever known and inspired people to reach new heights and invent, and innovate, and drew immigrants from every corner of the world because they understood that no matter what you look like or where you come from, here in america you can make it. that's the promise of america. that's what we're going to keep on fighting for. that's what you're fighting for. that's what this summit is all about. let's go out there and get to work. thank you, guys. i love you. god bless you. god bless america.

♪ [applause] >> the homeland security committee will investigate the recent influx of immigrant children across the u.s.-mexico border. watch live coverage tomorrow on c-span3. you can join the conversation on facebook and twitter. thousand seven half past different bills to address the problems at va medical centers. the committee will try to work out the differences between the measures. our live coverage begins at 2 p.m. eastern on c-span3. >> more now from the white house summit on working families with

first lady michelle obama. >> are you ready for this? we have been listening backstage. very dynamic. how are you? >> i am great. doesn't robin look good? you're just saying it because it is true. it has been all day long.

that lively group discussion that preceded us talking about the role of women in the workplace and the fact that nearly half the work force is made up of women. fortune 500 see the companies, only 24 women are ceo's. less than five percent. like everyone if you're involved in any type of work you want to be in and and -- and an environment where you can excel and grow. what can we do to change that environment? >> you have heard it all day today. we have to use our voices, particularly the young generation. we have to realize now that the numbers are on our side, more and more people are realizing this is an issue for everybody. we have to use our voices and leverage to make amends and feel like we can make the request to ask our employers.

i had to find that voice within afterelf and it occurred barackth of sasha and mentioned this. everybody is like what is he talking about? this is what he was talking about. this is what he was talking about. ofad dealt with the target how my balancing things, barack was in springfield and he was in washington. i was in chicago trying to manage these two beautiful girls and holding down a part-time job. the first thing i tried to do part-time thing. what i realized was that i got gypped on that front. when you look -- work in a professional job i got a part-time salary but continued to work full-time. after that experience i said

never again will i shortchange myself. we were still paying for full-time babysitting. we had to have full-time babysitting so that was a net loss for us. then i had sasha. we lost our baby. which was probably the worst time of my motherhood. if i was -- i was so devastated because that balance, that work-family valance is so fragile and you realize how within a blink of an eye, sick child, sick parent, that allen's is drawn off. after we lost that first babysitter so on we developed trust with, they were wonderful and left her kids. she needed to make more money. it was devastating and i said then i quit. just forget it.

i am not doing it again but i got a call from the university of chicago hospital. they wanted me to interview for a job and i was ready to be done but that empowered the. i do not want this job so i will go to the interview and i will be whoever i'm going to be. they're going to have to deal with it. who i was was a breast-feeding mother of a four-month-old. and i did not have a babysitter so i took sasha to the interview with me. this is who i am. i got a husband who is a way and i have two little babies. they are my priority. if you want me to do the job he have to pay me to do the job and you have to give me flexibility. flexibility means that i will work my tail off for you but you had better pay me and value my family. the guy said of course. and i thought, are you kidding?

presidentecame a vice of the university of chicago hospitals. he put my family first create i felt like i owed that hospital because they were supporting me. that is what we have. we have to have employers to understand that this is about their bottom line as well. to your careerh changed as you became a mother. more direct with what you needed and your employer responded. there are a lot of people who will say i am at risk of i do that. it might lose my job erie it i really need this job. >> that is why it is so important for women and men who are in the position to make these demands to do it. this is not just -- this is not about me or barack.

things are different now. we live in the white house. upstairs that god create we have resources that we never could have imagined. not about us. it is about every mother and father out there who does not have the leverage to make those demands. we are fighting for them. we know how tough it is. understood the advantage that i have. if i were a teacher or buster ever or a shift worker. there is no room for that kind of negotiation. butou are an hourly worker the needs are even greater because the balance is even more working for many families. folks in an hourly wage. child care is beyond expensive. athad the luxury of looking nannies. we could not afford to keep the

one we had. we were not looking at the cost of childcare, taking a baby and packing him up and putting him in the car seat and dropping a childcare center coming back. just that emotional tug on its own is powerful. it is not lost on either me or barack how tough it is which is why we all have to be in this fight. this is something we are doing for each other. the fact that you're saying working families because the landscape is changing. women are going into the workforce and there are more stay-at-home dads. is that part of the movement and letting everybody know that it then issue for everyone in family. >> absolutely. i love the fact that this is a working family summit. you guys heard from barack.

at least i heard you heard from him. what i heard he talked about was just how important those first months that he had with the girls was. understand, you need that time. that time that he spent getting up taking the late-night shift. not only did it save me, give me some sleep and peace of mind but he commit -- connected with our girls in a way that i still see. that connection is real and we as mothers, we do not take that for granted. you do not miss that time. now that molly and sasha are teenagers they do not want to be bothered with us. that youthat time spend rocking in the chair and reading them stories that he was able to do that.

not only did he value it but he was in a work situation allowed him to do that. that brought us closer. this is about strengthening the whole family. more and more men are realizing pass off thenot responsibilities. they have to fight for these changes for themselves. this is not a woman's issue. one thing that touched people is when he said yes, you are a strong woman. a strong wife. to see you break down in tears because you are trying to juggle so much.

i tell you women and families we grow up and we think we have it all figured out. we have plans, four years at this university and i will go path.h this i am like, just have a baby. that baby comes out and looks you in the face and all the plants go out the window. you do not know how you will feel. every child is different. of joy, a new set of worries to your life. there is nothing more important to me than my girls. when we first came in and someone asked me what was my agenda and i said it is making sure that my kids are whole. i felt like i was being honest. the truth of the matter is whether i am first lady and he is the president our first job is to make sure our kids are on point. that is the most important

legacy we will ever need. that is why this issue is so important. if there is a worry you do not think that you're leaving your child in good care. if they not healthy and whole and happy you do not bring that worry to work and he will eat away at what you're able to -- i do not care what you do. youorking families, don't wake up praying that nobody is sick. we all post them out the door a little sniffly. you're not really sick. not 100. we also them to school, your fine. try get some lunch. call me and tell you how you feel. but use send the muffin all you are doing is wearing that they

are falling apart in school. he's a real emotional -- emotionally draining issues. because there are employers that have figured out how to do this, how to give us families the space to be good workers but also to be good families, if some can do it, they can all do it. some are doing it, not all are doing it. in part why we are here among people want to know the role of the federal government and if -- some pieces of state government. that should beng done because there are a lot of people who are not certain of that. >> there are two ways to focus this. you will see in this administration they're going to do everything in their power to make changes and to lead by example. one of my young staffers said she got an e-mail from the chief of staff of said because of the summit this administration is

going to start asking a set of different questions. the first thing that the president can do is make sure that his administration is leading by example. what we need to do on the policy front requires congressional action. you got a have elected officials who believe in these issues and the changes that need to be made as passionately as well do. that will require us to help them understand how important these issues are. >> there are some who feel when thealk about memo wage, first time we sat down and had an interview you brought it up. you are passionate about it then. that aree are people

there who are saying it will cause jobs to be lost, it is such a political debate. what can you do if you lose that debate, what can be done to push that through? >> i think building momentum because most employers are private employers. they can make and studies are showing that having a fair wage, having decent family leave policies and creating a flexible environment that improves the bottom line for companies and we have to start getting that information out so that every company looks at the bottom line for themselves. is anyone even looking at it? if we allowed this not to be an issue because we are sucking it up and let me tell you women, we suck it up. we're going to figure it out. maybe it is me, the reason i feel crazy.

we tell ourselves i should be able to manage this. i should be able to have a full-time job and pick my kids cook adrop them off and meal and fried up in a pan. forget heer let him is a man. i am a woman. remember that? enjoli. >> yeah. up taking these issues on we are going to do it all. arere not focusing on -- we not focusing on the need to push for change. the 21st century workplace as you have pointed out, it is very different. women are working more. men are understanding their value as caregivers. breadwinners.ary we could go on and on. things are different. we cannot keep operating like everything is the same area that is what many of us have done. it is up to us to change the

conversation. this summit hopefully is the beginning of the shift and .ialogue you cannot wait for politicians they have to feel the pressure. .hat is the job of all of us it starts here. these conversations have to continue. this is the beginning. it has to be a movement and there has to be momentum and it has to can you -- continue. the pressure is too real. this is the conversation we're having at every social it -- socioeconomic level. we are demanding that we can have the resources to do it all.

to be good workers, to earn a decent living and raise our families so they are whole and happy and healthy. that is the american way. >> it was said that there are more women in law school and other fields. when it comes to science, tech knowledge he, engineering, and mathematics, that is where the growth is, where women can make even more money than any other field. even though there are more of us on college campuses we are not in those fields. stigma.ms to be a how do we eradicate that? >> we have to start very early being maurice's ours are put into encouraging women and s.t.e.m. fields. field requiret

stair steps of math and science. everything builds upon everything else and so many girls shy away from math and science, they automatically say i am not good at that. i did not go to medical school because i thought i was not good at sciences. my mother told me i talked a lot so i went to law school. we've got to get girls when they are young before they move a way the mythology that women cannot do these things so we have to start very early. >> you had said in parade magazine that you and your husband would like your daughters to get a minimum wage job among to build character, to understand what it is like. what kind of job? >> i do not care. just a job that pays them. it really does not matter what

it is. i think the whole point is that they learn how to reload their sleeves and work hard and understand what the vast majority of folks have to do to earn a living and it is not glamorous and it is not fun all the time. there are people who get up every day for their entire lives and go to a job that is not fun and they do it to put food on the table. my father was one of those men. just watching him get up everyday and go to work and go to a job that was not exciting and glamorous but to go to a job that paid the bills, it motivated me to never take my education or my opportunities for granted. i want my girls to understand that. >> when you leave washington, malia will be in college.

know. >> sasha will be in high school. there are many people that are what's your next act. >> me? no, it will not be political. ( laughter ) no, it definitely will not be. will be mission based, it focused.ervice [cheers and applause] >> well, here we are, we have nancy pelosi that was up here, we have women in the supreme court, and there are many feeling that if we're going to talk about leadership and that's what we're doing here, that a part of that.t is what an example that would set and for young girls boys and for all of us. do you perceive that happening and when should that happen? >> that should happen as soon as possible. [cheers and