All workers should have the right to negotiate fair wages, benefits, and better, safer working conditions. We stand for the right to negotiate collectively and oppose any legislation that would weaken worker protections or subvert the will of the people in implementing the $15 minimum wage. We support a requirement that employers offer earned paid sick leave as well as legislation that protects The Florida Retirement System and local government pensions from unnecessary reform. Additionally, we support the ability of local governments to set their own minimum wage and add additional wage theft protections to address employers' failure to pay workers.
Many hard-working Floridians were left vulnerable to significant dangers while providing essential services on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a state, we need to do better at protecting our essential workers by providing access to the necessary protective gear and proper testing protocols to keep our families safe. Additionally, in order to continue providing world-class care to Floridians, we support legislation that encourages controlled patient loads and staffing ratios in our hospitals and nursing homes and incentivizes the recruitment and retention of the most highly qualified healthcare professionals. We also support proper compensation in the form of hazard pay to acknowledge the significant sacrifice our essential workers have made and continue to make for our communities.
City and County governments are best suited to make decisions that meet the needs of their residents. We oppose laws that strip away power from local governments and give authority to state legislators to decide what happens in our communities.
We support tax reform and policy changes that encourage corporations to contribute their fair share in taxes. We need to invest in increasing our quality of life and in making Florida a state where we can all live, work, and thrive.
We support expanding Medicaid coverage to those who can’t afford insurance, preserving insurance for people who gained coverage under the Affordable Care Act, and improving standards so the coverage is of the highest quality. Access to quality, affordable healthcare should be a right for all Floridians.