By: Jodi Lepaopao, Respect Nebraska Voters Campaign Manager
Everything about my professional journey has made me feel more connected to Nebraska. But it’s an experience from my childhood that shaped me and informed my work life, resulting in a whirlwind year that led to my first campaign manager role with the Paid Sick Leave for Nebraskans ballot initiative in 2024.
My mom was a working parent and my dad stayed home, yet it was always my mom that took us to the doctor and stayed home with us when we were sick. After my parents split, even more of that caregiving responsibility was put on her. Thankfully she had paid leave, but it’s easy to see how things could have changed quickly if she, as the sole provider, would have missed a paycheck.
It’s a memory that stayed with me into adulthood, when I began working in customer service jobs—slinging pizza, managing a coffee shop, bartending and working at a grocery store—all workplaces staffed mostly by women. There’s an expectation that women are the caregivers and yet, more women than ever are also in the workforce. Women are driving this economy.
At my last customer service job, effects from a long-term illness caused me to miss several days of work. Then, I was in a car accident and physically could not work. In most of my previous positions, I had no sick leave. Sometimes I did but there was always penalization for using sick time. As I sat in my supervisor’s office, knowing that I was days away from losing my livelihood, I knew I needed to do something different—for myself and my well-being.
So, I went looking to be part of something with a purpose. After working in customer service jobs for well over a decade and then taking some time off to recover, I was ready to make a change. Without being sure quite what I was looking for, I applied to collect signatures for the Paid Sick Leave for Nebraskans ballot initiative. The firm selected to hire paid circulators, Landslide Political, saw something more in me and hired me to be a field organizer.
It was a two-month position that paid well. I thought, if anything, this will give me time to figure out my next move. Then, I got started and it seemed like my dream job had fallen into my lap. In less than a year, I went from applying to be a signature collector to then serving as the campaign manager for the ballot initiative. The position couldn’t have come at a better time.
Born and raised in Omaha, I had moved to Lincoln and was feeling disconnected from my new community. In the field director role, that quickly changed. Most of the people hired by Landslide were advocates already, working in their own corners of the community to create change. It was immediately inspiring and energizing. I stepped into a world that was happening around me and I had no idea.
Politics can be divisive but there’s something beautiful about the collaborative work being done by advocates across the state to bring kitchen table issues directly to voters. Slated as a commonsense issue with wide support, the paid sick leave ballot initiative benefits both part- and full-time workers across the state. It’s work that I’m proud to say nearly 75% of voters across the state supported.
When you go to the Sandhills and talk Nebraskan-to-Nebraskan, connecting directly with folks on the issue and having real conversations, the divide isn’t really that big. At the end of the day, people want what’s best for their families and their communities. Having the ability to earn and use paid sick days was an issue we can come together on.
So, I was surprised when, during the 2025 legislative session, lawmakers rolled back portions of the voter-approved paid sick leave ballot measure. And I was also frustrated because I know what it took to get this issue in front of voters, but I also heard stories from countless neighbors about the impossible choices folks were making monthly to care for their families when they were sick while trying to cover all their bills. Neighbors who no longer had the ability to earn the paid sick leave right that they voted for just a few months before.
Now, I am just one of the Nebraskans working on the Respect Nebraska Voters campaign to ensure that when voters take the time to vote on something, that vote stands. Several high school classmates from Millard left the state immediately after school and I figured I would eventually, too. They didn’t feel seen or validated here. I felt disconnected and stifled in my career. Now, everything has shifted as I work daily to improve my home state, for myself and others.
There are many people fighting every day for a better Nebraska. I am proud for the work we did to pass earned paid sick leave after no progress on the issue in the legislature over nearly a decade. And I’m proud to support teams and supervise others working now to strengthen the ballot initiative process to ensure lawmakers in the future respect Nebraskans votes.
I shouldn’t have to leave to be proud of where I’m from. I want to fight for a better Nebraska—a place where workers and families are supported.
A version of this article first appeared in the 2024 issue of Today’s Omaha Woman magazine.