ECONOMIC EQUITY

We are a country that doesn’t take care of its people. The American Dream is supposed to come with a good quality of life; instead, it is dependent on our citizens working themselves to the bone. If the federal minimum wage had not increased in 2009, workers in Georgia would still be making $5.05/hour. Although studies show a liveable wage in Georgia should be at least $17.00/hour, District 3’s previous representatives continually voted to keep their neighbors at or below the poverty line, with many making only $7.25/hour. That means it has been 14 years without a pay increase and still our Republican leaning Congress will not do anything about it.

So many of our elected officials are out of touch with the people they represent. $7.25/hour is hardly enough to make ends meet, and that’s without adding taxes to the equation. For one hour of work, you could get 2 gallons of milk for your family. For a rotisserie chicken, you would need to work over an hour. For a box of cereal, that’s another hour and a half. By the end of the day, you can just about feed your family. But what about bills? Insurance payments? Student debt? There is no way for those below the poverty line to dig their way out, and politicians saying they just need to work harder is a sign that they have abandoned the people.

Maura will back legislation that supports paid leave, paid sick time, and paid time off. She believes that these protections are essential for workers, regardless of whether you’re a minimum wage worker or a CEO. Unpaid time off is not enough, and some workers don’t even have access to that. If you or a loved one are experiencing an unexpected illness, not getting paid leave will only add to your stress in an already difficult time. If you need maternity/paternity leave, you may be forced to come back to work sooner than what feels right for you and your family. This is just for medical and family matters; there are many Americans who don’t have the luxury of taking even a short vacation. Maura believes everyone should have the right to PTO and will advocate for this in Congress. Federal law does not guarantee workers a single paid day off, which leaves America behind the times compared to other developed nations. Paid family leave has been dropped from legislation multiple times and Maura wants to make sure that protections like this are passed once and for all.

When it comes to economic equity, Maura also wants to address the subminimum wage paid to disabled workers. In Georgia, there are 8 community rehabilitation providers who are paying 245 disabled workers the subminimum wage, meaning they are legally allowed to pay as little as 22 cents an hour. Maura finds this unacceptable and, if you send her to Congress, she will support bills such as H.R. 603 Raise the Wage Act of 2021 which will see a federal requirement for raising the minimum wage over a 5 year period. All workers will receive a wage increase, and disabled workers will have protected access to the standard minimum wage through this process.