|
Dear Neighbors,
On
Labor Day we celebrate working people, and the achievements of the
union movement which make our families more secure and make our society
and economy stronger. Among them: unemployment insurance, minimum wage,
and workplace safety regulations.
The
experience of the pandemic has underscored the vital role of all those
protections, and shows we need to act to strengthen them.
UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE
Imagine
what would have happened to individuals, families and businesses if we
hadn’t had an unemployment assistance program. Those benefits helped
reduce hunger, homelessness, and despair. They gave recipients money to
spend, supporting our whole economy. For over 300,000 Massachusetts
residents, those benefits end this week.
The
pandemic has made it clear that we need to preserve and strengthen
unemployment insurance. We need to ensure that the program has adequate
reserves to pay benefits in hard times.
 The
Massachusetts unemployment trust fund was the 6th worst funded in the
country before the pandemic. That means that when there’s a recession
we have to borrow money from the federal government. Right now we owe
$2.26 billion. (That doesn’t include about $20 billion from the federal
government that paid for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and extended
benefits during the pandemic. That’s money Massachusetts employers
don’t have to pay back.)
The
governor proposes using $1 billion of the state surplus to pay off that
debt. This would reduce business payments into the unemployment trust
fund somewhat over the next 20 years. But it doesn’t solve the chronic
underfunding of the reserves we need to build up in good times so we can
pay benefits in bad times. We need solutions to resolve this problem
before the next recession.
Federal
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance provided funds for hundreds of
thousands of people not traditionally eligible for unemployment, like
independent contractors, self-employed people, and seasonal workers -
workers who would have been left entirely without income otherwise
during the pandemic. Those jobs are a fast-growing share of the
economy, which means that in future downturns, more people won’t have
support when they lose their jobs. We need to find ways to include more
people permanently in unemployment insurance, to ensure that those who
are entitled actually get it, and to spread the cost and benefits more
broadly. The ballot question by Uber and Lyft would change the law and
permanently make their drivers ineligible for unemployment. That is a
move in the wrong direction.
ESSENTIAL CARE WORKERS
Another
lesson from the pandemic is the importance of people in low wage jobs:
caring for older people, those with disabilities, and young children;
and working in retail stores and restaurants. Last year, these jobs
were finally recognized as “essential” to our society and economy. But
they have never been paid adequately. From home care to assisted living
to nursing homes, employers and clients face a growing and critical
shortage of workers. One of the biggest problems at the beginning of
the pandemic was that 17% of nursing homes positions were vacant, which
made it much harder to care for their residents safely. As staff got
sick or left in fear of infection, the vacancy rate soared to 40%.
 Nursing
homes and home care programs depend on public funding. Payment rates
need to reflect the real cost of care, including “enough pay to stay:”
wage rates that can attract, train, and retain skilled workers. Direct
care for older people and those with disabilities is among the fastest
growing job sectors, but inadequate pay will mean shortages continue to
grow and people go without the care they need and deserve.
As of last month, 5200 home care consumers were waiting for needed and authorized services; there just weren’t enough workers.
If home care pays less than Walmart or Burger King, and you have to
travel between jobs, with erratic and unpredictable schedules, we can’t
really expect people to choose to enter this workforce.
The same is true in child care and early education.
Four hundred centers have closed permanently and others have reduced
enrollments as providers can’t find staff. Parents who can’t find child
care can’t return to work. Neither can early educators who are
parents. Adequate public funding to sustain quality programs and attract
talented and trained teachers is crucial - for children, families, and
the economy.
Our
economy is more and more divided. Salaried professionals are far more
likely to be able to work from home, to afford child care, and to avoid
catching COVID. Those at the lower end of the economy have to work in
public-facing, less safe jobs; they live in more crowded and unstable
housing with the possibility of eviction or foreclosure; they’re more
likely to catch and spread COVID at work and at home; and they’re more
likely to become unemployed.
WORKPLACE SAFETY
 Governor Baker needs to reinstate the workplace protections
he eliminated last month and enforce federal OSHA guidelines in all
workplaces. Those guidelines state that masks should be worn in public
indoor spaces in areas of high or substantial transmission, regardless
of vaccination status.
The CDC says that people who work in person are twice as likely to contract COVID as those who work at home.
 I’m
sure all the signs that sprouted on lawns early in the pandemic
thanking essential workers warmed the hearts of our lowest-paid workers,
but a sweet “thank you!” doesn’t put food on the table--or keep them
safe at work.
It’s time to match words with action.
Stay safe and stay in touch!
|
0 comments:
Post a Comment