DC Residents Call on Council to Pass Fair Scheduling and Paid Family Leave

​A hospice worker, a young mother and a McDonalds worker were among the more than 100 community and labor activists who turned out Tuesday morning in front of the Wilson Building for a spirited rally urging returning lawmakers to immediately resume work to pass fair scheduling and paid family leave legislation. While scheduling and family leave were put on hold before the summer recess, speakers pointed out that they couldn’t so easily do the same with their lives. Kimberly Mitchell, a Ward 7 resident who works at Macy’s downtown, spoke powerfully and personally about the twin crises affecting many workers and why both bills must pass. “While the Council was out, I had MRIs done to confirm my worst nightmare: the brain tumor my doctors have been monitoring for two years has spread,” she said. “My hours at work were cut yet again this summer and on a part time, unpredictable salary with no paid medical leave and a teenage daughter to support, I still don’t know how I’m going to afford the medical care I urgently need.” 
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​Paid family and medical leave would allow people to take time away from work - with pay - to care for themselves or a family member in need. Advocates from the DC Paid Family Leave and Just Hours campaigns are planning a major push to ensure their bills are passed. Elizabeth Falcon, Executive Director of DC Jobs With Justice – which is anchoring the Just Hours Campaign -- declared that “Everyone deserves to be able to work the hours they need to put food on their family’s table and, at the same time, earn paid leave so they don’t have to choose between their paycheck and the health of a loved one. These basic protections for DC families must go hand in hand and must be enacted without delay!” In addition to ramped up organizing efforts, the campaigns are launching digital ads to encourage legislators to do right - right now - by DC families. The DC Paid Family Leave Campaign is anchored by Jews United for Justice.