The state earned a D-minus in the study, "Expecting Better: A State-by-State Analysis of Laws That Help New Parents."
The National Partnership for Women and Families analyzed state laws and regulations regarding paid leave and workplace rights for new parents.
The report grades every state, based on the enactment of certain laws expanding on federal leave and workplace protection. Seventeen earned an F.
"It doesn't surprise me that Indiana got a D-minus, because Indiana sort of prides itself – at least our leaders do– in being pro-business," said Kevin McElmurry, assistant professor of sociology at Indiana University Northwest in Gary.
"Our policies in Indiana tend to favor business at the expense of workers. A system where we let businesses and corporations decide how much they want to take care of their workers is always going to be a race to the bottom."
The ones feeling the brunt of it are the marginalized, such as the poor and single mothers.
"Single mothers with small children are the fastest growing segment of workers," McElmurry said.
People who hold white collar or upper management jobs, especially for large companies, tend to have more flexibility and control over their day-to-day work life, McElmurry said.
"You can take off in an emergency situation without having to worry whether your job will be there when you get back," he said.
The United States is one of the only major industrialized nations that does not make an allowance for family care for the whole nation, McElmurry said.
"We are an anomaly on the world scene, in terms of the way we treat families," he said.
One of the barriers preventing people from advancing careers or pursuing further education is the lack of support for parents, McElmurry said.
"For women and men in Indiana, this is an everyday problem," he said.
The issue resonates with his students. They're trying to juggle work, pursue higher education and ensure their children are cared for.
"It ends up being an enormous pressure when they have to make tough choices between turning in the big semester project, getting to work on time or taking care of their children," he said.
They learn to strategize, drawing on a network of family and friends to pitch in.
Mike Ripley, Indiana Chamber of Commerce vice president of health care policy, said people need to have a proper work-life balance.
"And when that happens, it benefits the employer, too," he said. "They get employees who are happier to be at work and are more productive. The Best Places to Work in Indiana program that we coordinate each year is full of companies that recognize this benefit. Having work flexibility and recognition of the importance of family always ranks as some of the most appreciated workplace benefits.”
Ripley said the Indiana Chamber allows flexible hours for working mothers, some of whom work three or four days a week, on a case-by-case basis.
"We also provide several on-the-clock breaks during the day for expressing milk," he said. "These policies are ways to show our workers they are valued. And I know similar voluntary actions are being taken by many Hoosier employers.”
The report shows Indiana has no laws beyond the federal Family and Medical Leave Act to guarantee job protection or leave for new or expecting parents.
It also states that nursing mothers who work for private sector companies with 25 or more employees must be provided a place other than a toilet stall to express breast milk, to a reasonable extent.
But, the law does not require workers be provided reasonable break time to do so.
State workers are entitled to reasonable paid break time to express breast milk at work while their children are infants, and the state must make reasonable efforts to provide a place other than a bathroom for employees to pump breast milk, according to the report.