Working Families

Students are drowning in debt. The average debt load for an Oregon college graduate is now $25,000, a 75% increase since 2005. This is a truly remarkable cost shift onto the backs of students. Our system of public education that was founded to serve the public good, is quickly slipping out of reach for working class people.

Fortunately, Oregon just took a first step yesterday to change the debt-for-education treadmill that has trapped students, and trapped our economy. By a unanimous vote, the House Higher Education Committee passed HB 3472,* a proposal that Oregon Working Families has taken a leading role in pushing forward for many months now. [1]

If you want to break the debt-for-education trap, and feel we have come too far to turn back now, sign our petition in support of the Pay it Forward system for debt free higher education in Oregon.

Federal action is needed to fix many aspects of the broken higher education funding system, but the great thing about the our Pay it Forward model is it is something the state of Oregon can do right here to make college accessible to all Oregonians. Here’s how it works:

1. Students who choose to go to an Oregon public university or community college would go tuition free.

2. Then, in the same way that Social Security is a generational compact, graduates pay a small, set amount of their income into a Higher Education Fund dedicated to allowing the next generation of students to go to school tuition free.

3. Finally, graduates don’t start life after college with a massive debt, and we remove Wall Street banks–along with the interest and fees they charge for their loans–from the system altogether.

The bill that passed yesterday is a first step, but it was a big one. It directs the Higher Education Coordinating Committee to develop a Pay It Forward pilot program to be presented to the next Legislative Session for approval. Now our bill moves on to the Ways and Means Committee and then to the floor of both Houses.

With the vote yesterday the Oregon legislature is leading the country on developing a viable, state-based alternative to the debt-driven system that makes Wall Street happy, but leaves students saddled with unsustainable debt.

Don’t let the momentum die in our fight to end student debt as we know it. Sign the petition for debt free higher education in Oregon, and help Oregon lead the nation on addressing this critical issue.

The Portland City Council voted unanimously (5 – 0) in favor of an Earned Sick Days policy today, making it the fourth city in the United States to pass the ordinance.  The ordinance, once implemented next year, would allow workers to take up to five days of leave when they or a family member is ill.  Workers at businesses with six or more employees would be allowed paid sick leave, and employees at smaller businesses would be granted job-protected unpaid time.

“This is a huge victory for working people throughout the city of Portland, and now we need to pass this at the state level,” said Steve Hughes, State Director of Oregon Working Families. “Commissioner Fritz showed great leadership on this issue, and we commend her and the entire council for their long, hard work crafting this policy.”

40% of Portland workers—and 80% of service sector workers— don’t currently have access to sick time on the job, and stand to benefit from the passage of this ordinance.  Studies have shown that the lack of paid sick time disproportionately impacts working class people, women and people of color.  145 other countries around the world have already established earned sick time as a basic labor standard.

Oregon Working Families spent a good portion of the summer and fall talking to Portlanders about the sick days ordinance.  This field program, which together with allied organizations, knocked on just shy of 40,000 doors, found widespread popular support for the ordinance.  “We found that when you went out there and talked to every day Portlanders, this Earned Sick Days ordinance just seemed like common sense,” said Steve Hughes.

The coalition now turns its attention to statewide legislation, with Representatives Michael Dembrow and Alissa Keny-Guyer and Senators Diane Rosenbaum and Elizabeth Steiner-Hayward leading the effort in the state legislature.

WFP Co-Chair, Jeff Anderson from United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555, talks to the press prior to the hearing.

Despite opposition from the Portland Business Alliance and a string of biased editorials and articles in the Oregonian, Earned Sick Days had a very successful hearing Thursday night at the City Council, with all 5 commissioners indicating they would vote in favor of the measure next week. This will require that employees earn one hour of sick leave per 30 hours worked, for up to 40 hours of sick leave per year.

Oregon Working Families has been part of a massive, year-long effort to talk to everyday Portlanders about this critical issue. Together with our allies we knocked on 39,345 doors throughout Portland and talked to 15,251 people. We delivered 6,595 letters and generated 1,327 calls to City Council in support of Earned Sick Days for all working Portlanders. But we’re not stopping here. As Earned Sick Days in Portland winds down, it’s time to focus our efforts on a statewide Earned Sick Days bill. Stay tuned for more as we gather legislative advocates and start work on ensuring all Oregonians have the right to paid sick leave.

In the mean time, join us in City Hall at 9 a.m. Wednesday morning if you want to watch this historic measure pass. It’s been a year in the making, but it’s time for Portland to have Earned Sick Days.

It’s an exciting time to be an Oregonian, with several new bills on the docket that would protect and aid the working class. We need your support in Salem to show legislators that they need to put these bills on the fast track.

Tuition Equity

H.B. 2787, tuition equity, will open up Oregon’s university system to undocumented Oregonian students that are on the path to citizenship by providing them with in-state tuition rates.  It passed the House with bipartisan support, and now the Senate hearing for tuition equity will take place on Tuesday, March 19th from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. To RSVP and for information, click here. We appreciate your support!

Wage Theft

Wage theft is a growing problem in Oregon, as some employers deny overtime pay, pay workers under the table, pay less than minimum wage, or use other ways of denying their employees’ fair compensation. This session, three bills to address wage theft have been introduced in the House. H.B. 2976H.B. 2977, and H.B. 3142 will protect workers rights’, recover lost wages and prevent employers from abusing the system.

These bills will have a legislative hearing in Hearnig Room D at the Capitol on Wednesday March 13th. Come show your support for Oregonians’ right to fair wages! Click here to RSVP on Facebook. We hope to see you there!

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