We Need to Talk About Pregnancy Loss and the Workplace

We spend a lot of time on this show talking about the ways this country fails mothers, and every time we think we’ve found all the holes, another one shows up that makes us want to go break dishes in the alley. This week it’s pregnancy loss, and the fact that so many women are expected to lose a baby and then show up to work like nothing happened. Our guest is Jackie Mancinelli, a high school English teacher from New Jersey and the founder of Start Healing Together. After her miscarriage in 2014, Jackie was back in front of her students the next week because she was a new hire without enough sick days, and she ended up crying in the middle of class. Two years later, her son Richard died shortly after an emergency C-section at nearly 34 weeks. At eight weeks postpartum she was cleaning classrooms for a summer paycheck, because grief doesn't pay the mortgage. So she did what women do, and turned the worst thing that ever happened to her into action. Heads up that this one includes detailed discussion of miscarriage and infant loss, so take care of yourself and skip it if you need to. Follow Start Healing Together to support the bill. Join our newsletter community here. ORDER The Parisian Heist here. Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices