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TOMORROW, #Virginia’s #MinimumWage will increase to $9.50/hr (the first time it will be above the federal minimum!) and the state's local governments will no longer be banned from entering #CollectiveBargaining agreements with their staff. 
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$9.50/hr is far from enough, yet even this small step is important. About 400,000 people in #Virginia, half of whom are people of color, have already or will see a raise as a result of the increase and, on average, their earnings will increase by $881/yr. #RaiseTheWageVa
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The 2020 law included future #MinimumWage increases until we get to $12/hr in 2023, then requires further #VaLeg action to get to $15/hr by 2026. Virginia policymakers should act sooner to #RaiseTheWage and remove exclusions.
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By the way, many of those who will benefit from the #MinimumWage increase are frontline workers, such as grocery and childcare workers, although, unfortunately, the #VaSenate rejected broadening the min wage to include #FarmWorkers.
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#CollectiveBargaining is also an important step in increasing equity and opportunity in the workplace, reducing pay disparities and making sure everyone has a voice.
5/ https://www.epi.org/publication/why-unions-are-good-for-workers-especially-in-a-crisis-like-covid-19-12-policies-that-would-boost-worker-rights-safety-and-wages/
5/ https://www.epi.org/publication/why-unions-are-good-for-workers-especially-in-a-crisis-like-covid-19-12-policies-that-would-boost-worker-rights-safety-and-wages/
Local officials should take up this option and recognize the rights of their employees to collectively bargain to improve public services and workplace equity, as #AlexandriaVA has done.
6/ https://www.alexandriava.gov/news_display.aspx?id=121801
6/ https://www.alexandriava.gov/news_display.aspx?id=121801
These changes didn’t happen by accident. People came together during the 2020 #VaLeg session and made sure that Virginia would no longer be the worst state in the nation for working people.
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There’s so much work yet to do to build an equitable commonwealth. Visions of a better future, such as that laid out by our friends at @NewVirginiaMajority, keep us energized to do that work.
https://www.newvirginiamajority.org/tenyearvision
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https://www.newvirginiamajority.org/tenyearvision
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So this #MayDay, we’re celebrating how working folks (most of them Black & Brown) have shown up in the old capital of the confederacy & got policies changed that are improving lives today. We’re looking forward to continuing to stand by you for a better tomorrow.
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