Frontline workers – health care, transit, farm, grocery, domestic & delivery workers – are risking their lives to keep America running. We can’t rely on big business to protect them. So @RepRoKhanna & I are proposing an Essential Workers Bill of Rights to #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#1: Employers must be required to provide personal protective equipment at no cost to workers, including contractors & subcontractors. And they must have protocols for informing employees & evacuating & cleaning the site if there is COVID-19 exposure. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#2: Every worker should be paid a livable wage, & essential employees are no exception. On top of that, they should be paid robust premium pay retroactive to the start date of the pandemic. And premium pay should be higher for the lowest-wage workers. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#3: Collective bargaining agreements must be protected from being changed or dissolved during this crisis, including during any bankruptcy proceedings. And workers’ rights to vote to unionize must be protected during the pandemic. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#4: Workers need truly universal paid sick leave & family & medical leave. Congress must pass @PattyMurray’s bill to provide 14 paid sick days & 12 weeks paid family & medical leave that President Trump cannot arbitrarily exclude workers from. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#5: Whistleblowers need real protections. Workers who witness unsafe conditions on the job or know about workplace coronavirus exposure must be able to openly identify their concerns & have them addressed, without fear of retaliation. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#6: No more misclassifying employees as independent contractors to avoid providing basic benefits & protections. Congress should crack down on worker misclassification. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#7: All essential workers should get the care they need, whether they’re insured or not & regardless of their immigration status. We must use public programs to provide no-cost health care coverage & also fully subsidize 15 months of COBRA. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#8: Congress must ensure that essential workers have access to reliable, safe, healthy, & high-quality child care, & commit robust funding to help struggling child care providers during this pandemic. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#9: Essential workers, their unions, & worker organizations must be at the table in developing employers’ responses to coronavirus, including safety protocols & plans for distributing PPE. Let’s treat workers like the experts they are. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

#10: Corporations getting taxpayer money should be held accountable for meeting their responsibilities to workers, & workers should have a stake in how funds are used. CEOs should have to certify they’re in compliance with these rules or face penalties. #ProtectEssentialWorkers

Essential workers can’t wait any longer for safety equipment, safety standards, or basic job protections. Their lives are on the line every time they clock in. Congress must #ProtectEssentialWorkers in the next package. https://www.warren.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/elizabeth-warren-and-ro-khanna-unveil-essential-workers-bill-of-rights