Thursday, November 14, 2013

Join Raise Up Massachusetts for its Weekend of Action

As you may know, the Massachusetts Democratic Party is a strong supporter of Raise Up Massachusetts. The organization has been working hard to collect enough signatures to get two initiatives on the ballot for November 2014:  One to raise the minimum wage, and one to provide earned sick time for all Massachusetts workers.  We are emailing you to ask that, as Democratic supporters, you take action to help Raise Up Massachusetts gather signatures in the final week.

This upcoming weekend, 
November 16th and 17th, Raise Up MA is sponsoring Hometown Weekend of Action events in communities across the state. To organize an event, or see if one has already been planned in your area, please visit http://action.raiseupma.org/page/s/hometown-weekend-of-action.

These issues are at the core of Democratic values, as they protect the rights of working citizens and their families. Legislation such as this is long overdue. The facts speak for themselves. 

  • Over a million workers--almost one-third of the overall workforce--are at risk of losing the wages and jobs their families depend on if they stay home to take care of themselves or a sick child. 
  • Increasing the minimum wage would impact one in five workers in Massachusetts and give them financial stability to provide for their families.
  • Nearly half a million people are minimum or low wage workers.
  • Almost all of low wage workers still fall well below the federal poverty line despite working 40 or more hours per week.
  • One in five of low wage workers is a parent.
  • There are 277,000 kids in Massachusetts who have a parent making at or near the minimum wage.
The initiatives would help ensure thousands of low wage workers can afford basic necessities and would protect them from being fired for taking care of themselves or a loved one. Currently, over 150,000 signatures have been collected, including many of the state's political leaders. However, the deadline to submit a total of 226,000 signatures is November 20th, and we need all the help we can get to reach our goal.

To learn more about the importance of earned sick time and a higher minimum wage for Massachusetts workers, families, and communities, visit raiseupma.org. We thank you for your support. Fair employment practices are long overdue and within reach. Together we can improve the lives of workers across Massachusetts.

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