2022 Chapter II Social Justice, Section G. Labor (2)f

SPONSORS
Name of party/caucus/committee and co-chair contact information
Nevada Green Party, co-chair: Margery Hanson, nvgreenparty@gmail.com
South Carolina Green Party, co-chair: Jessica Lazenby, jalazenby27@gmail.com

APPROVAL PROCESS
Brief explanation of approval process and date of approval
Approved by GPNV steering committee consensus vote, 9/27/2021
Approved by SCGP steering committee consensus vote on list, 9/28/2021

CONTACT INFORMATION
Garret Wassermann, garret.wassermann@gp.org

PLANK DESIRED TO CHANGE
Chapter 2 Social Justice, Section G – Labor, Subsection 2(f)

CURRENT LANGUAGE
The language currently reads:
“All workers, temporary or permanent, must be paid a living wage. The federal minimum wage for all workers should be set to at least $15 per hour, indexed to inflation.”

PROPOSED LANGUAGE / REVISION
Replace the language with the following:
“All workers, temporary or permanent, employee or contractor, must be paid a living wage suitable for a single income, working full-time 30-35 hours per week [see Chapter IV, Section H, of this platform for more information]. The federal minimum wage for all workers should be indexed to inflation and adjusted regularly to ensure all workers nationwide continue to receive a living wage. The tipped minimum wage should be abolished. To ensure a livable income for all people, we support additional measures such as implementing a universal basic income [see Chapter IV, Section D, of this platform for more information].”

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS
The current language is somewhat confusing when read in combination with Chapter IV, Section D – Livable Income. That section includes a call for a universal basic income, so rather than tying ourselves to a specific number for wages that is quickly growing out of date, we should emphasize the broader plan of the Green platform to support a Livable Income for all. This also recognizes that the “gig economy” is increasingly turning many workers into contractors. We also cite Chapter IV Section H which calls for “Adopting a reduced-hour (30-35 hours) work week as a standard.”

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