Our super-hero lobbyist, Laura Harper, will be exceptionally busy running between girls day and the labor committee, Laura will be assisting our 100 girls as well as talking with members of the labor committee and leadership about L.D. 1665 – if you wanted to help our lobbyist right from home, you could email The Governor to ask for his support on L.D. 1665, the grass roots support will really help Laura carry the case for women and families!

This legislation would  adjust Maine’s minimum wage based on changes in the federal Consumer Price Index for the Northeast. With passage, this would put Maine among the 10 other states that also index their minimums.

In her testimony to the Labor Committee Laura stated that,

“For the first time in our nation’s history, women make up half (49.9%) of the workforce. Yet, women consistently make less than men in comparable occupations, women out-number men in minimum wage occupations, and they are less likely to have access to benefits such as health insurance, paid time off, and retirement. For women working today, the stakes are higher. When we bring home the paycheck, we need to stretch it farther for our own sake and that of our families. Even for the sake of the economy, our dollars will be returned to the community when we have greater capacity to purchase goods and services. Indexing the minimum wage is an effective way to measurably keep the wage floor consistent with the cost of living. It protects working women and their families.”

Laura was also joined by MPA, SEIU, AFL-CIO, Catholic Diocese, MEJEP, numerous workers, ROC- Maine, and MECEP in testifying in support of the legislation.

“Maine will set the pace nationally for replacing toxic flame retardants with truly safer alternatives,” said Michael Belliveau, executive director of the Environmental Health Strategy Center. “We applaud the pallet company iGPS for its commitment to achieve a rapid phase out of this toxic flame retardant chemical.”

The Maine legislation reflects a negotiated agreement between the Speaker and iGPS, the company that pioneered the use of lightweight, high tech plastic pallets that have rapidly gained market share against traditional wood pallets, and environmental public health advocates, including Environmental Health Strategy Center, Natural Resources Council of Maine and the Alliance for a Clean and Healthy Maine.

The Maine law will set the terms for the company’s replacement of Deca nationwide. Under the Maine bill:

• The company will fund an independent alternatives assessment study at a cost of up to $250,000, to be managed by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP);

• If the DEP determines that safer alternatives are likely to exist based on the study results, then the use of decaBDE in pallets must be ended early – within 12 months and no later than January 1, 2012;

• The final phase out deadline may be extended only if more time is needed by the company to complete fire safety or performance testing or modify the manufacturing process, but the use of Deca in new pallets must end by January 1, 2013; and

• The replacements for DecaBDE must be safer alternatives – the Maine law bans the use of other brominated or chlorinated flame retardants or other persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic chemicals as substitutes for Deca.

The Maine bill will require further votes before becoming law, but with unanimous support in Committee and the support of the plastic pallet company affected and Maine Governor John Baldacci, final passage of the legislation in the next few weeks is virtually assured.

The legislation, LD 1568, An Act to Clarify Maine’s Phase-Out of Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs), builds on laws previously passed in Maine in 2004 to ban the Penta and Octa PBDE flame retardants and in 2007 to ban Deca in televisions, computers, mattresses and textiles. Several other states have begun to phase out PBDEs in products including Washington, Vermont, Oregon and California. Maine Speaker Pingree’s mother, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree has introduced HR 4394, the Deca Elimination and Control Act, to phase out deca in all uses nationwide. In December 2009, three manufacturers of Deca announced a voluntary agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to end production of Deca for most uses before January 1, 2014. The national voluntary agreement, however, does not restrict specific product uses, would not affect the use of Deca in products imported into the United States, is not enforceable and does not ensure that safer alternatives will replace Deca.

Decabrominated diphenyl ether (DecaBDE) is a high volume, general purpose flame retardant chemicals that’s been added to plastics and synthetic fibers to slow the spread of flames in the event of a fire. Deca is a PBT – persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic chemicals. It is long-lived in the environment, except when exposed to sunlight which breaks it down into more toxic byproducts. Deca and its toxic byproducts build up to higher levels in the food web, including human breast milk, and the environment. The PBDEs including Deca have been shown to damage the growing brain of newborn animals causing hyperactivity, learning disabilities and impulsive behavior. These chemicals also wreak havoc with thyroid hormones, which are essential to normal brain development and metabolism. Deca and other PBDEs threaten children’s health.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tell us to stay home from work or school in order to decrease the spread of the H1N1 virus. President Obama says, “If you’re sick, stay home.” Common sense tells us to limit our contact with others when we are sick.

Yet for the majority of Mainers, staying home isn’t that easy. For workers who don’t have paid sick days, following this advice can lead to losing much needed wages, or even their job. That’s why, as a Maine business leader, I support paid sick days.

In times like this it is especially unfair — and unsafe — when people are forced to go to work sick.  And when employees in the food, retail, and health care industries can’t stay home, it’s a public health concern and a liability – for Maine’s business community and for citizens across the state.

Presenteeism, the lost productivity that occurs when employees come to work but perform below par due to illness, has an economic price.  Paid sick days help business benefit from reduced turnover, higher productivity, and reducing the spread of contagion in the workplace.

Making it possible to stay home when you have a fever is a shared responsibility for everyone in Maine. That’s why, as a business owner, I believe paid sick days are the right thing for my company, my employees, and community. It’s time to level the playing field so that everyone has paid sick days.

Good health is good business.

MDI Imported Car Service

Melanie Collins Childcare

Armand  Taschereau Builderd Inc

Khadighar & Scatterseed Project

Theresa Mattor Landscape Architecture

Reben, Benjamin & March

Plante Drywall

Farnsworth Law Office

Noah’s Ark

Rent-A-Geek, LLC

cunningham books

The Gorham Grind coffeehouse

Railroad Square Cinema

Tom Finn Shoe Repair

Ann Croket, PhD

Anytime Antiques

Uptown Appraising

Harbor View Eye Care

Kim Favreau, Custom Seamstress

The Art Guru

Finishing Touches

Solar Marine

Augusta Vacuum

Eastern Awards

Redstone Inc.

John Costin Studio

Woodman’s Grill

Iladel Couture

Otto’s Pizza

Zarra’s

Rhodes Concrete Corporation

If you’re like me, you’re disturbed and disappointed by the passage of Question 1. Everyone put so much on the line. On the lobbying team and in the field ,volunteers and staff were driven, thoughtful, strategic and focused. Thousands of you put your stories, time, and dollars to work. You did everything right.

Ultimately, however, this is just one phase in the campaign for justice. The foundation we built together will endure – and prepare us for the next moment. We’re particularly proud of Maine’s lawmakers who heard their constituents appeals for justice and in some cases, rightfully provided leadership in their districts. As part of the Maine Women’s Lobby’s 30 year history, you know that winning justice is a multi-year , sometimes a multi-decade proposition, and it will never be easy. This is why we lead.

Thanks for being part of this work now, and for the long haul. We’ll grieve – we’ll support our friends and partners in the work – but we won’t stop today, or ever.

Thanks to all,

Sarah Standiford

Contact: Sarah Standiford, 207-622-0851, ext. 20, or 207-837-2609 (cell)

Paid Sick Days Needed to Limit H1N1 in Schools and Workplaces

Augusta – On Tuesday, a prominent local physician joined Senate President Libby Mitchell and advocates for seniors, women, and survivors of violence to urge passage of “An Act to Aid in the Prevention of the Spread of H1N1 Influenza by ensuring the Provision of Earned Paid Sick Time.” The bill was recently approved for introduction by Legislative Council by a vote of 10-0.

The bill, introduced by Senate President Libby Mitchell, would provide approximately six paid sick days annually for large businesses and approximately three days for small businesses. The time could be used to care for oneself or a family member for illness or in relation to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking.

Public health officials have repeatedly cautioned that the best way to stop the spread of H1N1 is for workers to stay home if they are sick and for parents to keep children who are sick home from school. In August, the White House released a report of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology which estimated that H1N1 could infect as many as 120 million Americans this winter, resulting in the death of as many as 90,000 Americans.

A 2007 study by the Trust for America’s Health (released prior to the current recession and the outbreak of H1N1) projected that a pandemic flu outbreak would cause a $2.4 billion drop in Maine’s GDP and cost 11,000 people their lives. By taking action to enable private sector workers to take care of themselves during this public health crisis, Maine lawmakers will protect Maine’s economic recovery and the public’s health.

Said Dr. Daniel Summers, an Augusta physician specializing in Adolescent Medicine and Pediatrics, “I’m telling the parents of the children I treat, stay home when you’re sick and keep your children home from school and day care when they are sick. But until all of these parents have paid sick days, I know many will not be able to follow my advice.” He continued, “This is one of those situations where we need the State Legislature to step in. Every parent I talk to should be in the position to take my advice for their own safety, the safety of their children, and the safety of the public at large. But until we pass this law, there will be those who won’t be able to do what is best for their family’s health, the public health and the health of our economy…”

Said Senate President Libby Mitchell, “Without job-protected paid sick days, workers will risk their paychecks and even their jobs if they stay home when they or their children contract H1N1. I introduced this bill because, especially during a public health emergency, it is our shared responsibility to ensure that every Mainer can protect their health and the public’s health.”

Sarah Standiford, Executive Director of the Maine Women’s Lobby, noted that it is during the recession, especially, that workers need these protections. Losing a job can be catastrophic and can add demands on already strained state services. She said, “That’s why a policy such as job-protected paid sick days is a job retention strategy – a boost for workers and their families, a benefit to business and also a prerequisite for public health.”

The Maine Women’s Lobby is a non-partisan, non-profit, membership organization working since 1978 to increase opportunities for women and girls through advocacy and legislative action.

www.mainewomen.org.

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This legislation makes Maine the 33^rd state in the nation to allow for a rebuttable presumption when a firefighter contracts cancer due to exposure to harmful chemicals while on the job.  It’s all part of our work here at the Maine Women’s Lobby to ensure that every Maine family lives in a home free of harmful chemicals.  When firefighters risk their lives to put out fires in our homes, they shouldn’t have to risk cancer as well, just because of the toxins contained in our everyday household products.

Over the course of the months it took to pass this bill, I got to know many of the firefighters who took time out of their jobs, and away from their families to talk to legislators about the need for this legislation. It was a real honor to work along side these brave men and women and honestly, a lot of fun too!

I have to admit I got a real kick out of the surprise expressed by legislators when I asked them if they had a moment to discuss this bill.  Legislators were taken aback when along with the 10 to 20 burly men dressed in uniform, there was this little lady from the Maine Women’s Lobby talking to them about this legislation!

Always a pleasure to break a stereotype!

Congratulations to all of Maine’s Firefighters and the many advocates who worked on passage of this bill.  And thank you to Senator Bartlett for the sponsoring the bill, to the members of the Labor Committee for your tireless efforts, and to Governor Baldacci for signing the bill into Maine law!

So, I started asking around … and here are some reflections from the women of the Maine Women’s Lobby:

Director of Public Policy, Laura Harper, and some of her lobbyists cohorts.

Here’s what Laura had to say:

I feel certain that my experiences lobbying for marriage equality will never be matched. Every day, I came out to legislators. I shared with them my commitment for my partner, Lauren, our engagement, and the fears and discrimination I have faced during our partnership because we can’t get married.

It was a rush. It was exhausting. It was scary. It was joyful.

When the Governor signed the bill into law, I was waiting with other advocates outside his office. When a member of his staff discreetly stuck her head around the door and whispered, “He signed it,” I knew I was a part of Maine history. I knew it would be a moment I would never forget, similar to when President Obama was elected or when we finally passed the anti-discrimination law in Maine.

I will return to that moment again and again. There will always be a part of me that will never age, there will always be a young woman standing there in her little suit with her sweaty armpits and rumpled tissue thinking, “Oh my God, we’ve actually won.”

Here’s Sarah, our Executive Director:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here’s Kim Simmons, one of our board members:

The highlight of the 124th Legislative session, for me, was the passage of the Marriage Equality Bill!  I am impressed with the cooperation that emerged in the 124th Legislature and with the fact that our leadership is female. Nevertheless, I was disappointed not to see more radical and progressive action taken to redistribute wealth in our state, to protect the poor, and to address the absence of paid sick leave which creates both the potential for a public health crisis and family emergencies on daily basis. It seems to me that we have a unique moment to truly push for tax policy that is rooted in social justice priorities and reflects the interests of most Maine people, and I hope that more progressive and innovative thinking will emerge in the second session of the 124th!

Charlotte at the State House

And, here’s what I think:

So, when I think back on the 124th session of the Maine Legislature, my first thought is, “phew … it’s over.” And don’t get me wrong, I love the excitement of the session. I love the exhilaration of the wins – and the opportunity of the losses. And, I guess in a lot of ways I would describe this past session as a roller-coaster ride – we were up, we were down, we were recessed, we were tabled … Oh yeah, I was paying attention to the play-by-play afforded to us by Laura, her Blackberry, and Twitter … and I was addicted! Check out our newsletter archive to review the roller-coaster ride.

So, enough about us. What do you think? Add your reflections today.

PS: Yes, “phew” is actually a word. It’s in the dictionary and everything.

Thanks everyone,

Charlotte

Among them: American Cancer Society, Disability Rights Center, Equality Maine, League of Young Voters, Legal Services for the Elderly, Mabel Wadsworth Women’s Health Center, Maine Center for Economic Policy, Maine Centers for Work and Community, Maine Children’s Alliance, Maine Civil Liberties Union, Maine Employment Lawyers Association, Maine Equal Justice Partners, Maine State Employees Association/SEIU, Maine State Nurses Association, Maine Women’s Health Campaign, Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, Women’s Law Section of the Maine State Bar…

Each have joined with the Maine Women’s Lobby to pass this much needed protection. The bottom line is that workers with family responsibilities (and that’s a lot of us!) shouldn’t fear discrimination on the job. While Maine law protects women who are preparing to welcome a new child into the world, there is no state or federal law to protect workers who have children or are caring for aging parents. As a result, you can be fired to refused promotion, simply based on *assumptions* that you have too many obligations at home.

It’s time to update our workplace standards to the needs of 21st century families. Join us in calling for the House of Representatives to pass L.D. 962. Please call your Representative at home, or call the State House and leave a message asking him or her to support the majority “Ought to Pass as Amended” committee report for An Act to Protect Family Caregivers. Just dial 800-423-2900 or contact us at info@mainewomen.org if you want help.

Thank you!

The Women’s Leadership Action Coalition is a group of 20+ organizations advocating for women and girls. Among those represented today: Maine Centers for Women, Work, and Community, Maine Equal Justice, Maine Women’s Lobby and Maine Women’s Policy Center, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, Maine Civil Liberties Union, Mabel Wadsworth Women’s Health Center, Business and Professional Women, AAUW, League of Women Voters, Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault, and more!