 Media, our elected representatives, and members of the Working Vermonters Caucus. My name is Michelle Salvador. I'm the founding chair of Rights and Democracy, who is hosting this event today. We're a new grassroots organization in Vermont and New Hampshire dedicated to organizing everyday people to make their voices heard. And to win real change for our communities and for working Vermonters. We're here to announce a new initiative called Raise Up Vermont. Because right now in our state, too many working people can't make ends meet and provide for their families. Our local economy suffers when people are not paid properly for the work that they do and when they lack immediate protections. Well-being local businesses often can't compete with people who break the law and how they compensate employees just to shave operating costs. The bottom line is the less money that workers bring home, the less money that we spend in our local businesses. In many ways, today is the perfect day to launch this effort. Just a week after we saw Senator Bernie Sanders' overwhelming support across Vermont and his bold agenda for working families. We believe we are long overdue to take the necessary steps to address growing inequality in an economy that is out of balance. We are here to ask for bold action this legislative session and in the coming year. We are all proud to have worked to help pass paid sick days and we thank those of you here today who supported that fight. We can build upon that victory by moving forward with earned family leave, laws that prevent worker misclassification and wage theft and a livable wage for all Vermonters. We can and we must do better and we believe when we raise up Vermont for everyone, all of us will thrive. We all have a stake in this and when we join together, together we will win. I'd like to welcome our first speaker, Abdullah Sal, who works in Burlington and came here today to share his story about workers' rights in Vermont. Hi, everyone. My name is Abdullah Sal and I'm a member of the Fulani Nation of West Africa in the fall of the 15th Kings of Islam. We're the religion of Shahi Jahan and Jahan being the Muhammad rule. So I came here from Vermont for six years. And when I first got here, I immediately fell in love with the state, but finding a job was difficult. Not only finding a job, but finding one that pays a livable wage is even more difficult. So I worked in the U.S. for ten years to pay the education. Going to college gave me a bunch of student debt and it hasn't helped me at all. That even decreased my economic freedom. So today, most Vermonters in the system wages are one of them and for many, this is not a choice. They just have to accept their circumstances because they can't afford to fight back against exploitation. So employees need livable wages and better protections in our state. Our government needs to hold businesses accountable to decent standard wages for workers in the state. I think paid family and medical itself. I start with the premise that all humans are not machines. Humans are feelings and emotions and are susceptible to pain, suffering, sickness, and death. These humans are the producers, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers. And for sure they are awful. They are sons and daughters, husbands and wife, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, and which show obligations. We are all a lot of working people. We should be sad to hear someone can work for five or ten years or more about a single-paid day off. It is unjust in the end. If benefits society at the moment, every hard-working person is giving the opportunity to work and rest. In the interest of society, about society. When there is a newborn in the family for the parents of that child to be able to stay at home and born with their newborn. I believe love is developed and nurtured through time to spend together. A lot of paid leave creates stress-out unions that lead to conflicts, which is the cause of unstable relationships and a high rate of death to divorce. And for that family, time to fund children are deprived from healthy family love, that nurture growth and development through newborns. I am not an expert on energy, but I strongly believe the leading cause of crimes and violence in society is a lot of paid family and medical leave. I think it is unkind for a person when they are safe to worry about going back to work and care for their friends and take care of themselves when they are not healthy. This lot of paid leave creates stress-out unions, families and communities that put burdens upon our schools, our government services, our justice system. If we are alive and can do it, so can we here in Vermont. Therefore, I ask you to please elect a paid family and medical leave for everyone, whether you have time or full time in the public. This should not just be for the privileged people. Thank you so much. John is from Woodsboro and he is a former legislator and former co-chair of the Workers' Caucus. John? Thank you Michelle. How do you tell them Vermont voted for Bernie Sanders in the recent Democratic primary? As a matter of fact, this should be voted for yesterday. Like Bernie, people are angry, oppressed by a great economy, working harder, longer hours, for less care. Especially for those in the retail, tourism and service industries. The salesman, the waitress, the handyman, the changer man, the toilet cleaner, the nursing assistant, the home care provider, the creators of our economy and the providers of our human services. By use of head, heart and hand, they have already earned a little wage. The trouble has been not being paid. Through wage set, they are being reduced to service. No business that does not pay a little wage, according to FDR, has the right to exist. And I say that no business is entitled to tax considerations in Vermont that does not create jobs that at least pay a little wage. In a country where 20 individuals possess as much work as 160 million Americans, I'd say it's safe to say that our economic system is not working. It is time to join the rights of democracy and Senator Bernie Sanders in a call for economic and social justice and environmental sanity. Let us start with a little wage of at least $15 an hour for all the moderators. Thank you. From Lincoln, Marty is a nurse at the UVM Medical Center and she is also a founding member of Rights and Democracy. Marty, a mostly person Vermont for almost 30 years. I have witnessed much heartbreak from my patients and family suffering because of a system that fails them and witnessed struggle from many of my work friends. Particularly those non-union hospital workers who talk to me frequently about how important it is for us to raise standards for all working people. We need to change and we'll keep pushing for paid family and medical leave. I support raising the standard reasons I believe we must continue for this state. I know from my experience as a nurse that we are all in this together and truly we all do good in my childhood. I said yes last night to bold people-powered change and last week when never was it more clear 86% of us in Vermont said yes to Bernie's agenda and to bold people-powered change. The tide is turning. The people of Vermont, as Bernie has said from the beginning of his campaign the political revolution must be bigger than it must happen at every time we are at Bernie are just getting started. He is representing the Vermont Interfaith Action. He is a pastor of the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd and Bear. Reverend Cooper Kent. Thank you. On behalf of the Vermont Interfaith Action of which I'm a leader we are so excited and honored to be here for Rise of Vermont. We think this is a really good campaign because indeed truly together we win. We're two years down the Vermont Incensus of what constitutes a moral economy by holding up the teachings and the traditions of our multiple faiths which provide tenants upon which we can all agree. And we are also in agreement though that our current economy does not be tenants of our values and faith. And indeed it's rapidly moving away from the vision of a just economy which respects the dignity of every human being. There's five tenants of a moral economy for the dignity of all people by providing full opportunity for all to express their gifts and abilities through work and play. Secondly by ensuring that all work is just to be valued. Third ensuring that all who are unable to work because of societal or personal limitations are respected by all of us are respected as well. And finally by acting as good stewards of the earth and of the earth's resources and preserving life for future generations. On these tenants we think we build a moral economy. Indeed livable wages and as well working against wage theft and jobless classification are ways to move with signing of the paid sick days here in Vermont. But now we keep moving forward to raise up Vermont. Thank you very much. He represents the Washington County and the Senate and has a very long history in fighting for working Vermonters. Senator Plena. First of all remind us why we're here and talk for a minute about the issue that underlines all the other issues that are being talked about. And it's an issue that legislators and policymakers can't seem to get a handle on. That is the growing wealth gap in Vermont and what is doing to middle class working families. We're not talking about rhetoric, we're talking about the reality. It's a very painful reality. It hurts families but it also undermines our economy and our state budget. I want you to remember that between 2004 and 2014 the wealthiest Vermonters saw their income go up by over 230%. People making between $50,000 and $60,000 a year around median family incomes saw their incomes go up to up to 3%. The lower income Vermonters actually saw their incomes go down during that time and overall family income in Vermont in 2014 was lower than it was in 2004. So let's be clear. When incomes go down, tax revenues go down. When incomes go down, businesses suffer because Vermonters don't have the money to spend on local businesses. When incomes go down, poverty and then the needs or state services goes up. And then policymakers in this building say, gee, we're sorry, we don't have any money. We have a deficit. You have to ask the question why. We all know there's not less money in Vermont than there was 10 or 20 or 30 years ago. What we know is that the increases in income and wealth are going to the wealthy who already have more than they need. That's the issue. That's why we're here asking for economic justice and asking the real question which is whether policymakers will have the political will to recognize that problem and to stand firm and support the families that are here today. Thank you. But certainly not least we welcome Michelle Fay. Michelle is the Associate Director of Voices for Vermont Children. Michelle. I'm so delighted to be here. I'm so proud to recognize our partners who fought so hard to gain face-to-face here in Vermont. We were very proud to work with the Fritz & democracy in Vermont and all the members of the Vermont face-to-face coalition. As a mom of two myself and as a former legislator from St. John'sbury who's worked with a number of families for many years, I can tell you that while we celebrate for a minute today, our work is far from over. I recently read an article that moved me so much. A story of a woman who had managed to scrap together three weeks of paid time so she could take three weeks of maternity leave after the birth of her child by C-section. And it was written almost like a journal entry and it was harrowing to read her start the countdown to her return to work just hours after she'd given birth. And as a mom myself I would just feel the ache and how hurtful it is. After three weeks her body's not ready to go back to work, her baby's not ready for her to go back to work and there's no way we can expect a person in that situation to be a productive employee. It's quality, so we have to stop the time if that's reasonable. America stands alone among developed nations and not providing some sort of paid family on medical leave and that's just purely unacceptable. So on a happy note we'll move into the House Chamber in a few minutes to celebrate the incredible hard work of thousands of Vermonters across the state who spoke up and called the legislators wrote letters to the editor and even came over to the schools in their house by speaking out about this lack of paid sick days. And we'll have a celebration tonight main street at the McQueen at 5 p.m. we invite people to join us and then tomorrow we'll go back to work fighting for paid family medical leave and all the rest of the critical worker benefits that were discussed previously because we know when we raise up Vermont the benefits of all of us My name is James Haslunds with Rights and Democracy So many people who came out today there's a lot of good stuff happening good things happening with the paid sick day bill signing we can answer a few questions now we also will have people around after the bill signing in the media once I interview folks after the paid sick day bill signing and have reactions about that. When you say you want paid sick leave you want more than what's going to be signed wouldn't you be pushing for more time? So it's made family and medical leave there was a study that was produced last week that's what Michelle was just talking about a number of the other speakers were talking about which is for a number of reasons when people need to be home with their babies they should not have to do that it risks losing a job it risks the livelihood of their family so that's something that Vermont can also lead the way on we're falling for action on that Raising that is one of the basically what we're saying with Raisa Vermont is we need to raise the standards for working people in this state paid sick days is a good step forward we need to take many more steps forward including paid family and medical leave including raising the classification of internet contractors in ways that would work Is there a candidate for governor to invest in buying these principles as you see it? It's a very good question a lot of the monitors are asking that question there's actually on the table behind you there's a flyer about some humanitarian panels that we're hosting on this scene coming up in Middlebury and then in Benton on April 9th and we'll be doing more events like that but we are very interested in people I think in this room are very interested in that question and a lot of people in our communities are very interested in it and that's why we're going to be doing more in a kind of way and frankly our senator Bernie Sanders was talking about James how big a problem is this misclassification issue which I can help you It's a huge problem especially in certain industries where essentially there's a lot of employers who can cheat the system misclassify people who are actually should be classified as employees as independent contractors and then of course have all kind of basically in many ways a fundamental worker right you can't be having workers rights if you're not actually a worker under the law so it's a big issue that has not been enforced far too long Is there a timeline for sort of getting some of these through the legislature I mean are we talking next session trying to get something this session what's it like So there are some bills in the works being talked about like misclassification independent contractors that's being discussed there are bills that are on the wall in this building right now for it to move towards a little wage towards $15 an hour but we hope there will be more progress facing a good step we should be taking many more steps as we heard from the speakers there's growing inequality in the state more people are are struggling with poverty more people are becoming homeless we can do a lot more this year and certainly in the coming years 50 boxes of wage I thought it was hard it's been a little bit we moved for $15 an hour here which you know we can give go stores a little wage you know a little wage obviously depends on the family size and so on but we certainly would expect $15 an hour in the wage as a good first step as soon as we possibly can thank you so much we have folks around for questions after painting thank you