Please visit our new address: www.workingfamiliesparty.org/blog. [...] 
The Working Families Party Staten Island Club has endorsed Michael J. Ryan in his race for County of Richmond District Attorney. To get involved in this race, contact Theo Moore at 718-222-3796. [...] Fusion: What’s in it for Democrats?
In the first two posts, I tried to make the case for “fusion” voting as something [...]
All week, Working Families Party Executive Director Dan Cantor will be blogging at the Talking Points Memo Cafe. Head on over and check it out. [...] [Gov Spitzer] [...]
Most Capitol observers agree that the Legislature is not likely to take up family paid leave legislation until next year. That would be a mistake. [...]
| Thursday, June 21st, is the night of the Drum Major for Justice Awards. We'll be there along with other New Yorkers committed to creating social change to celebrate the work of the Drum Major Institute. Find out more and come join us. The Drum Major Institute pushes [...] Charity Begins At Home And Spreads Itself AbroadHaving recently had to devote several days to helping my mother get herself admitted to a hospital, taking care of of her banking and financial concerns, as well as renting a small storage unit in her name, I can relate to the growing need for time off to care for [...] Newsday Weighs In On Paid Family Leave
Newsday weighed in on the Working Families Time to Care Act with an editorial in favor of paid family leave:
With a push from the politically potent Working Families Party, Albany leaders are negotiating a bill that would provide a modest income for those three months while an [...] Choosing between caring for my great grandmother w...Choosing between caring for my great grandmother when she broke her hip or teaching to support my 3yr old son, teenage sister, when our mother died of AIDS was devastating. I was the sole provider, the first to have a degree in my family, and her only chance because her [...] Restore the Right to Bargain for a Better Life
American workers are struggling to make ends meet and keep the vanishing middle class alive. But workers routinely face intimidation, harassment, and exploitation from employers when they try to form a union to bargain for a better life. It's a startling statistic: In 25 percent of organizing campaigns, private-sector [...]
Time To Stand Up For Real Family Values"As a young woman currently on unpaid Family and Medical Leave, now in California tending to my terminally ill mother, I have direct and first-hand knowledge of how devastating this transition of being both in family crisis and jobless can be. This is the type of situation that is a [...] Albany Common Council Votes To Support Paid Family Leave
With Republicans in the State Senate delaying passage of a paid family leave bill, the Albany Common Council has weighed in and passed a resolution in support of the Working Families Time to Care Act. The resolution urges the local legislative delegation to do all they can to make [...]
Reports Of My Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated
Paid family leave was the first topic on the agenda of today's 6-way Leadership Meeting between the Governor, Lt Governor, and majority and minority leaders of the Assembly and Senate. This is the first time the Working Families Time to Care Act has been on the agenda at a [...]
Paid Family Leave in the News
Our push for paid family leave got more coverage this weekend, this time from the New York Times:
Gov. Eliot Spitzer is pushing behind the scenes to win legislative backing for a plan that would give workers several weeks of paid leave to care for newborn children or [...] Family Leave Roundtable in Schenectady
Last Thursday, Legislator Gary Hughes; Legislator Ed Kosiur, Vice Chair of the Schenectady County Legislature; Schenectady County Legislator Vince DiCerbo and Schenectady Mayor Brian Stratton listened to Mia Puertas, working mother to Jada Puertas, and Doug Williams, working father to Maya and husband to Marie, talk about why they support [...]
Momentum Builds For Paid Family Leave[T]he Working Families Time to Care Act is an idea whose time has come. The paid leave bill was a top legislative priority for the labor-backed Working Families Party, a rising third party that was one of the first groups to have endorsed Mr. Spitzer's [...] Dan Cantor on Brian Lehrer
Working Families Party Executive Director Dan Cantor will be on the Brian Lehrer radio show today, talking about strengthening the middle class as part of a panel discussion at the New School.
Tune in today at 10AM on 93.9 FM or 820 AM or look for it [...] Family Leave Roundtable in Schenectady - Today!Caring for my 82 year old father, my 39 year old disabled sister with mental health and developmental disabilities and caring for my FIVE children was taxing at best last year. Allowing my husband the ability to take time off of his NYS job last year after the birth of [...] What Kind Of Map Do You Want?
After last week's successful Affordable Housing Rally, New York Is Our Home launched a project to create a citywide map of rent hikes. Almost 100 people have taken the survey, which means there are enough responses to create the map. But first, you have the chance to [...]
Canvassing in Schenectady and Long Island for Family LeaveGood family values come with devoting time with children. Give mothers (and fathers) a break and allow them the time to spend with their children, especially during their developmental age. Don't break their hearts by making them choose between motherhood and career. Give them better options and benefits!! Family Leave Roundtable on Long Island"We don't live in the 1950s anymore. With both parents working, we need policies in place that support couples when they decide to start a family or need to take time off to care for an ailing parent. That's what the Working Families Time to Care Act would do."That's Suffolk [...] Family Leave Roundtable on Long Island - Today!
We're holding a living room roundtable for working parents today at 2 in Mastic on Long Island to discuss the need for better state family leave policies so working parents can care for new kids and ailing relatives. Suffolk County Legislator Kate Browning will moderate the discussion.
Speaking at [...] 7,000 Came
The Hands Around Stuy Town Rally yesterday was a big success. Here's some of the coverage:
Today is the Day
The Affordable Housing Rally is finally here! We'll rally for affordable housing at Stuy Town this Wednesday, May 23rd, at 5pm. Turnout is so strong that we're expecting 7,000 people at the rally - 1,000 more than we thought a week ago!
Come meet us at Avenue C [...] 7,000 and Counting
The New York Is Our Home! coalition is closing in on 100 groups. And with all those groups working to turn people out for tomorrow's Hands Around Stuy Town Rally, there are now over 7,000 people coming.
Before you leave work, download the flyer for the [...] We're Helping Moms and DadsMy huband and I are expecting parents, and we feel that spending quality time with our babies is important. However, we are faced with the fact that we may not be able to afford to do this. As a father he only gets the time off that he has put [...] Next Week We Rally
Next week, you will be able to meet 6,000 other New Yorkers who care about affordable housing and join together to do something about it. Wednesday, May 23rd, is the day 6,000 of us join Hands Around Stuy Town.
RSVP today! We're expecting the attention and [...] Reasons People Support Family Leave InsuranceA government which claims to be "family friendly" should back that claim up with policies which allow families to survive in this challenging economy. One of Only Five Countries In The WorldEurope is so far ahead of the US when it comes to taking care of families: day care, health insurance, family leave or compassionate leave for those with seriously ill family members. Let's join the 'developed countries' at last. How Will You Care For Your Parents?As a grandparent of babies and a caregiver to my elderly mother, I am in the middle of the family crunch. I am the one who gives the help and does the paperwork as well as earns the money. Legislators must first consider working families otherwise the economy takes a [...] Income Inequality, Recommended Reading for May 2007
Over the weekend I found two good posts on income inequality: One from Amy Traub at DMI on progressive taxes and the other from Nancy Scola at MyDD on excessive executive pay. Give 'em both a read. [...]
Dads Want Family Leave InsuranceHaving a child is a life changing event filled with Joy and stress. Being new to fatherhood, I can attest that you need time to bond with you new baby. It is essential for the development of the parent and the child. Hands Around Stuy Town : 12 Days To Go
We're now less than two weeks away from the Hands Around Stuy Town Affordable Housing Rally.
Momentum is building for the rally. Borough Meetings in Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan were high energy and well attended. May 23rd will be even bigger. Over 80 groups are on the [...] Moms Want Family Leave InsuranceAs the breadwinner in my family (my husband lost his job last year) and the mother of a 1-1/2 year old with another on its way I am not in a position to forfeit 1, 2 or 3 months worth of pay. And going back to work sooner than 12 [...] Happy Mother's Day!
Mother's Day is this weekend. And when it comes to Mother's Day, we here at the Working Families Party say it's better to give than to receive. We hope the legislators at the state capitol in Albany agree.
We're giving them a Mother's Day card with a message: It's [...] House Vote Today on Iraq
The House plan to keep Bush on a short leash is dividing Congressional Republicans:
The White House acknowledged public frustration with the Iraq war but tried to play down Republican anxieties Grassroots Action on Affordable Housing
A shout out to Jason, who sent email in support of affordable housing legislation we support, A795, and heard back from Assemblymember Brodsky on the bill (Brodsky supports it). Let us know if you've heard back from your Assemblymember.
RSVP for the May 23rd Affordable [...] Supplemental Negotiations Continue
The House has taken the lead, and is proposing keeping Bush on a short leash:
In addition to the two months of Iraq funding, the bill would provide a $10 billion cushion to allow the military flexibility. It would also require the president to report back to Congress by [...] High Speed New York
There's a good discussion on Assemblyman Brodsky and Senator Leibell's Telecommunications Reform Act (A.3980B/S.5124) going on over at The Albany Project. This is a bill the Working Families Party supports. Here are two reasons why:
Save the Date, May 23rd Affordable Housing Rally
Always complaining about the cost of housing in New York? Do something about it. An unprecedented coalition including the Working Families Party, labor unions, and nearly every housing organization in New York City has united to form New York is Our Home.
We're launching a massive, grassroots campaign [...] Mission, um, Accomplished?
Four years after Bush landed on an aircraft carrier to tell us that the mission in Iraq was accomplished, he's vetoed Congress' supplemental budget bill for Iraq.
Congressional Republicans are so far siding with Bush to uphold the veto. But they're not also starting to hedge their bets: [...] Iraq Supplemental: Veto Watch
Congress is close to passing the Iraq supplemental budget bill, which Bush will promptly veto. And then? From the Washington Post:
House Democrats are beginning to coalesce around a $19 billion bill -- enough to fund the war for about 60 days -- without any withdrawal dates, according to [...] Honor the Peacemakers
Congratulations go out to the Capital District WFP Chapter. The Chapter honored Congressman Michael McNulty, Albany District Attorney David Soares and Community Activist Charles LaCourt last week at their annual fundraiser. The keynote speaker was Anne Mulderry from September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows.
An extra round of applause [...] Jobs and Energy Forum in Upstate NY - Tomorrow!
Tomorrow's the day. The Center for Working Families is hosting a Jobs and Energy Forum for elected officials in Upstate New York. The forum will bring together local and county elected officials and legislative staff with a panel of policy experts to talk about local legislation ranging from [...]
Queens Borough Meeting
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