New York City Council Introduces Landmark Paid Sick Days Bill

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Thursday August 20, 2009 · 3:18 PM PDT

2009/08/20 · 15:18

Coalition Introduces Paid Sick Days Bill

Cross-posted at the WFP's Party Line Blog

The Working Families Party, policy advocates, small business owners, and elected officials announced today on the steps of City Hall the introduction of a groundbreaking bill that would give every working New Yorker the right to paid sick days.

With 35 co-sponsors in the Council, the bill was hailed by public health experts as a badly-needed, commonsense measure. “When people have to go to work sick, it isn’t healthy for anyone,” said Lois Uttley, chair of the policy and legislative committee of the Public Health Association of New York City. “When one million New Yorkers don’t have paid sick days, it’s a public health crisis waiting to happen.”

Councilmember Gale Brewer, the bill’s lead sponsor and long-time champion, summed it up: “No one should have to lose their pay or risk losing their job because they are ill, or their child is sick.”

Charles Lenchner WFP

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Thursday August 13, 2009 · 12:32 PM PDT

2009/08/13 · 12:32

From WFP director Dan Cantor:

I'm not saying we should start rooting for the Red Sox, but some people in Boston are starting to talk a lot of sense.

Let me explain. When the Swine Flu outbreak hit, public health officials and even President Obama stressed that if you felt sick, you should stay home to help stem the spread of the disease.

It was sound advice, but unfortunately for the tens of millions of Americans who have no paid sick time where they work, it simply isn't an option.

Charles Lenchner WFP

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday July 31, 2009 · 11:04 AM PDT

2009/07/31 · 11:04

The billions were’t real, but the message was.

The top hat and tuxedo-clad “Billionaires for Budget Cuts” descended on Hartford yesterday, heaping some damning praise on Republican Governor Jodi Rell for her steadfast refusal to raise taxes on the wealthy in order to close the state’s $8 billion budget deficit.

The Connecticut Working Families Party sponsored the tongue-in-cheek rally as part of a month long campaign against the Governor’s regressive budget proposal. Her plan calls for closing the gap with taxes on the middle-class and billions in cuts to basic services working families dependent on. But Rell is defiantly opposing a proposal to raise income taxes on the wealthy, what many progressive economists say is the best solution for states facing budget shortfalls.

Charles Lenchner WFP

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Thursday July 30, 2009 · 12:26 PM PDT

2009/07/30 · 12:26

For the first time, America has a community organizer in the White House. What if we put a whole slate of community organizers in City Hall?

That's what the Working Families Party is fighting to accomplish this year. After Barack Obama's inspiring victory, the WFP searched throughout NYC for the next generation of City Council candidates who, like our President, got their start organizing in the communities they're now running to represent.

The people we've found will blow you away. Their stories represent the best of New York City. Their values embody everything the Working Families Party stands for.

With the September 15 primary elections just six weeks away, we want you to meet a few of the candidates who make up our "Community Organizer Slate." Electing this new generation of leaders will shift the balance of power in City Government away from real estate moguls and Wall Street tycoons -- and back to working families.

But they need your help to get to City Hall. Read the brief introductions below and click to find out how you can get more involved in their campaigns:

Poll

6 votes Show Results

Who's your favorite?

6 votes Vote Now!

Who's your favorite?

Jumaane Williams

2 votes

S.J. Jung

0 votes

Debi Rose

0 votes

Ydanis Rodriguez

0 votes

Daniel Dromm

2 votes

Brad Lander

2 votes

Right-Wing Group Attacks WFP for Standing up on Healthcare

Charles Lenchner WFP

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday July 24, 2009 · 11:46 AM PDT

2009/07/24 · 11:46

Yesterday, we told you that 5 New York Democrats in the House were blocking President Obama's healthcare reform. The response was incredible. Over 4,000 of you have already signed the petition.

That's not all. We got confirmation that our strategy of holding the Democrats accountable is the right move when a right-wing anti-healthcare reform business group unleashed a pretty over-the-top attack. In a blustery email message, New Yorkers for Growth said:

New York, NY-July 23...New York State's high-spending, left-wing Working Families Party today launched a blistering attack on five New York Democrats who have not signed off on the ever-changing Democratic health care legislation in Washington, according to fiscal reform organization New Yorkers for Growth, which obtained a copy of the Working Families Party (WFP) email missive.

Charles Lenchner WFP

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Thursday July 23, 2009 · 8:15 AM PDT

2009/07/23 · 08:15

From WFP Executive Director Dan Cantor:

We have to act fast. Five Democratic Members of Congress from New York are putting the brakes on President Obama's historic campaign to reform our broken healthcare system. Legislation that would expand healthcare coverage for tens of millions of Americans is gaining steam in Congress. But these five New York Representatives are stalling the bill because it pays for reform with a modest tax on the rich.

Charles Lenchner WFP

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday July 22, 2009 · 1:00 PM PDT

2009/07/22 · 13:00

It seems for some people, the economy isn’t all that bad.

Goldman Sachs, which took tens of billions in federal bailouts, is back in the black. Goldman announced last week they earned profits of ".44 billion in the last quarter alone. Now they’re planning to celebrate with $11 billion in bonuses - about $770,000 per Goldman employee.

It’s enough to make the average taxpayer’s head spin. But here’s another outrage: the Daily News reported Monday that Goldman-Sachs could soon receive up to $321 million in city and state taxpayer dollars as part of an incentive program to keep their offices near Ground Zero. That’s on top of $1.6 billion the investment firm has already received in tax breaks and publicly backed bonds for its shimmering new downtown headquarters.

Send Blankfein a letter now.

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New York City Council Introduces Landmark Paid Sick Days Bill

Boston Gets It: Paid Sick Days Should be a Basic Workplace Standard

"Billionaires for Budget Cuts" - Taking on Gov. Rell (CT)

The Next Obama? Help Send Community Organizers to City Hall (New York)

Right-Wing Group Attacks WFP for Standing up on Healthcare

5 NY Democrats are blocking healthcare: fight back!

No more bailouts for Goldman Sachs