There are millions of working moms like Eva. Unable to find a job and kicked off welfare, she sells her food stamps to buy basic necessities. She is inches from losing her meager living in the middle of the worst recession in decade — and a lack of paid sick days contributed to her downward economic spiral:

After two years at the wholesale company, Eva woke up one morning to find that her younger daughter had a high fever and her asthma had flared up. Eva called into work and rushed to the hospital early that morning “just to make sure she was okay.” When she got to the job in the afternoon after dropping the girl at home with her mother, tired from a long day in the emergency room, Eva found that she was being fired.

The Human Recession is a “don’t turn away” look at life on the edge in today’s economy — one story among many that illustrates why we need new public policies that ensure no one has to choose between keeping their job and caring for their family.

To learn more about how paid sick days help protect economic security for working families during tough economic times, check out out this fact sheet from the National Partnership for Women and Families.