Economic Justice

The cost of living in the United States has long eclipsed the minimum wage. At $7.25 per hour, an employee who is working 40 hours per week, 52 weeks a year, earns only $15,080. An increase to the minimum wage is imperative if we expect people to be able to support themselves with a full-time job. It's time that our federal minimum wage becomes a living wage. Urge your member of Congress to support the Raise the Wage Act.

As the world confronts the COVID-19 pandemic, many workers are staying home to care for themselves, for children whose schools are closed, and for family members who are ill or at high risk. While the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (H.R. 6201 in the 116th Congress) provided some workers 10 emergency paid sick days and 12 weeks of emergency paid leave to care for children out of school, the majority of workers were not adequately covered, and paid leave provisions expired at the end of 2020. Urge Congress to pass the FAMILY Act (S. 248/H.R. 804) to provide paid family and medical leave for all workers in America.        

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (H.R. 1065) would require employers to provide reasonable, temporary accommodations to pregnant workers so that they can remain in the workforce throughout their pregnancies.

Nearly three years ago, the COVID-19 pandemic sent the US into public health, social, and economic crises, but government action, such as temporarily expanding the Child Tax Credit, successfully blunted the worst economic effects. The 117th Congress is almost over. As families continue to struggle to make ends meet, with inflation on the rise, Congress must urgently expand the Child Tax Credit in year-end tax legislation.

Hunger is an endemic problem that plagues all aspects of our society. Despite being one of the wealthiest nations in the world, 1 in 9 Americans (more 40 million individuals)—including over 11 million children—live in households that are food insecure.

The Reform Jewish Movement has repeatedly called attention to the need to increase the availability of affordable housing and provide the means for people experiencing homelessness to make the transition from shelters and streets to stable homes.

The minimum wage is the absolute minimum amount a person can earn. Yet, at $7.25 per hour, an employee who is working 40 hours per week, 52 weeks a year, earns only $15,080.

The Jewish people, and the Reform Movement, have deep historical ties to the labor movement. To this day, labor unions remain one of the best ways to ensure workers receive the compensation, benefits, and safe working conditions they need.