In today’s news and commentary, Alabama enacts paid parental leave for state employees, a new jobs report could be upended by tariff policies, and labor unions help plan mass demonstrations across the country. 

In Alabama, Governor Kay Ivey signed a bill that provides paid parental leave to state employees, including public school teachers. The law, previously SB199, will go into effect on July 1. It makes Alabama the 39th state to offer government employees some form of paid parental leave. 

On Friday, the Department of Labor reported that employers added 228,000 jobs in March, an uptick from the previous two months. However, the numbers are based on a survey conducted in the middle of the month and do not reflect the Trump Administration’s recently announced tariffs. Experts predict that higher prices will lead companies to pull back on hiring and potentially resort to layoffs. On Thursday, automaker Stellantis announced a temporary layoff of 900 workers at five U.S. plants. The plants usually supply parts to Canadian and Mexican assembly plants where Stellantis has paused production due to the new tariffs. 25% of chief financial officers said that tariffs have prompted cutbacks in hiring this year according to a recent quarterly survey conducted by Duke University and the Federal Reserve Banks of Richmond and Atlanta. 

Meanwhile, “Hands Off!” demonstrations across the country peacefully protested the Trump Administration’s recent activities, including mass deportations, federal agency layoffs, eliminating bargaining rights for federal employees, and potential cuts to social safety net programs. Organizers estimate that over 600,000 people participated in the demonstrations, which were planned by over 150 groups, including civil rights organizations and labor unions. Unions, healthcare advocates, and education advocates plan to continue protests with a national day of action on Tuesday, April 8 to oppose proposed cuts to the NIH, NSF, and DOE.