Posted on March 11, 2021 by mgriffith
For Immediate Release March 11, 2021
President Biden’s American Rescue Plan Provides Desperately-Needed Relief for Colorado Families, Essential Services Our Communities Need
Positive Step Toward Recovery, But Incomplete Without a $15 Minimum Wage
Pueblo, CO – As President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan, Colorado WINS Executive Director Hilary Glasgow issued the following statement:
“As public employees continue working tirelessly to address the consequences of the pandemic, President Biden signed an American Rescue Plan that will provide desperately-needed relief for Colorado families and the essential services our communities need now and into the future.
“President Biden’s plan will finally get money flowing into our communities — including in excess of $14 billion for Colorado. Now it’s time for Governor Polis and our state legislators to commit to investing in the essential employees getting us through this pandemic. That means respecting, protecting and paying the people who provide the essential services keeping Colorado running throughout this crisis — in many cases, at great personal risk to themselves and their families..
“We need to invest in the services delivered by people like Jessica, who works in the Department of Labor and Employment, where there are 323 empty positions. She helps protect Coloradans on the job and while they’re searching for employment, but without proper resources she can’t do her job effectively. When state employees struggle to do their jobs, all of Colorado suffers.
“With this relief on the way, we need targeted investment into public services and the communities we serve — especially Black, Latino, Asian, Native, and immigrant communities that have been hit hardest by this pandemic, by becoming ill, dying, and losing jobs at higher rates than white Coloradans.
“To help our state respond to the COVID-19 crisis, the rescue plan establishes a U.S. Public Health Jobs Corps to bolster public health infrastructure — including contact tracing that reaches every community in America and new investment in the public health workforce.
“While the American Rescue Plan is a strong first step towards real relief for working families, there’s much more work still to be done. A full recovery won’t happen without a $15 minimum wage that lifts people across the country and in Colorado out of poverty. Working families across Colorado voted for transformative change and we will keep fighting for it. We hope Senators Hickenlooper and Bennet will champion the “Raise the Wage Act” among their colleagues when it reaches the Senate.”
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Colorado WINS is the union representing more than 28,000 classified state employees who work to ensure our quality of life in communities across the state and provide essential services to more than 5.6 million Coloradans.
