Jobs and Income Union organizing is way up — but it’s not rising as fast as non-union job creation A new report by the Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP) about the state of labor organizing in Maine and around the country argues that both state and federal […] Beacon Posted September 18, 2023 Tags Unions
Education, Taxes and Budget Golden’s ‘Blue Dogs’ get money from Sallie Mae after opposing student debt relief It’s unclear how Golden defines working class, however, as 92,000 of his Second District constituents would be eligible under Biden’s plan. As Beacon previously reported, about 33% of managerial and professional households in […] Beacon Posted August 18, 2023 Tags Student Debt
Taxes and Budget Workers made big gains this session, but some important policies were deferred “I think paid family leave is definitely one of the biggest wins for workers and it will make a huge difference for many people,” said James Myall, […] Beacon Posted July 20, 2023 Tags Budget, Job Quality, Jobs, Paid Family and Medical Leave
Jobs and Income ‘Embarrassing and shameful’: Advocates blast Mills’ veto of farmworker rights bill “Continuing the current system of sub-minimum wages for farmworkers means that about one quarter of Maine’s agricultural workers will continue to live in poverty,” said Arthur Phillips, […] Beacon Posted July 20, 2023 Tags Incomes, Inequality, Job Quality, Jobs, Minimum Wage, Racial Equity, Wages
Jobs and Income Budget committee funds bills to increase paltry legislator pay, implement drug policy reforms While LD 1155 was approved by AFA, a number of workers rights-related reforms failed to receive funding. One such measure was LD 1376, a bill to increase the state’s […] Beacon Posted July 13, 2023 Tags Health Care, Incomes, Job Quality, Jobs
Jobs and Income Maine nears making farmworkers eligible for minimum wage “Workers in Maine’s agriculture industry, disproportionately Black, Latino, and Indigenous Mainers, have been subject to exemptions from basic labor laws that make them much more likely to […] Beacon Posted July 10, 2023 Tags Immigration, Job Quality, Jobs, Minimum Wage, Racial Equity
Health Care, Taxes and Budget Campaign to extend MaineCare coverage to all eligible noncitizens vows to fight on “Maine should be a place where all of us, regardless of background or origin, can get health care when we need it. Unfortunately, this week the Maine […] Beacon Posted June 28, 2023 Tags Health Care, Immigration, Medicaid
Jobs and Income Maine could join growing list of states with a $15 minimum wage — unless Mills objects Some economists have argued that raising the state’s current minimum wage of $13.80 to $15 would create a meaningful increase to workers’ paychecks and help many working […] Beacon Posted June 14, 2023 Tags Incomes, Job Quality, Jobs, Minimum Wage
Taxes and Budget The window for balancing Maine’s tax code this session may be closing Proponents said amending Maine’s income tax is the most direct way to inject more fairness into the state’s tax code, while helping to fund critical needs such as […] Beacon Posted June 7, 2023 Tags Budget, Tax Breaks, Tax Fairness, Taxes
Jobs and Income, Taxes and Budget Mills’ proposal to cut paid family leave benefits could make it unusable for low-wage workers Proponents of the bill say Mills’ plan would make the program potentially unusable for many low-income workers who wouldn’t be able to make ends meet with such […] Beacon Posted June 1, 2023 Tags Paid Family and Medical Leave