TAKE ACTION: Urge Maryland Legislators to Vote YES one last time and save paid sick days
In a few short weeks, we have one last chance to win earned paid sick days in Maryland. We need to get ready right now because we’re not going to give up our shot!
When our Maryland state legislators are back in Annapolis we need them to vote YES, one last time, on HB1 -- the earned paid sick days bill that Gov. Hogan callously vetoed last spring.
If each of our legislators who voted YES on HB1 in April votes YES again (one last time!), we can override Gov. Hogan’s veto and finally win earned sick days in our state. [1]
When our state legislature passed HB1 last April, it was the culmination of over five years of hard work, serious debate, and compromise. [2]
Over the last five years, MomsRising members like you have sent thousands of messages, shared powerful stories, made hundreds of calls, written letters to the editor, gone to Annapolis, and met with legislators there and back home. Together, and along with our partners in the Working Matters coalition, we’ve poured our all into this effort because we know how important it is for working families to be able to earn paid sick days.
Families like Donna’s from Severn, Maryland, who shared:
“I once had to bring my sick child to work, and have her sleep on chairs in the nurses' report room because she couldn't go to daycare, and my backup provider was out of town. I cried all the way home at the end of my shift, and vowed I would never do that to my child again, even if I was at risk of getting fired, and struggling financially.”
That work has paid off: The Healthy Working Families Act, otherwise known as HB1, would allow hundreds of thousands of Marylanders to earn paid sick days for the first time and provide job-protection to hundreds of thousands more who currently live in fear that they could lose their job if they get sick. [3] The bill passed both the State House and the State Senate with enough votes to override the governor’s veto. [4]
And then Gov. Hogan callously vetoed this important legislation and is now trying to muddy the waters by pushing another proposal that will cover far fewer working people. [5]
But we’re not done fighting! As long as every legislator who voted YES on HB1 in April votes YES one last time to override Gov. Hogan’s veto, we will win earned paid sick days in Maryland!
*** And be sure to pass this email, or the link below, onto your friends and family in Maryland so they can take action too.
Together we’re a powerful force for women and families.
[1] Bethesda Magazine: State Legislators Rail Against Hogan’s Paid Sick Leave Veto
[2] Baltimore Sun: Families dressed as superheroes lobby for paid sick days
[4] Bethesda Magazine: State Legislators Rail Against Hogan’s Paid Sick Leave Veto
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