Tag Archives: democrats

2014 Midyear Newsletter

You can download the full printed version here.

Dear Friend,

The first half of 2014 has been a very exciting time at A Better Balance. Over the past several months wehave been working hard:

Ensuring that all workers in NYC know about their new rights to Paid Sick Days and Pregnancy Accommodations,
Advancing Fairness for Pregnant Workers Across the Country, including Officer Trischler in Florence, KY,
Crafting a Right to Request Flexible Work and Predictable Scheduling,
Launching the A Better Balance Southern Office,
Fighting for LGBT Working Families,
Keeping up the Pressure for Paid Family Leave.

And we are just getting started!

A Better Balance is now on the front lines making a difference, but we need your support to keep the momentum going!

Thank you, as always, for your support.

The A Better Balance Team

Sherry, Dina, Phoebe, Jared, Liz, Elizabeth, Risha, Morenike, Rachel, & Meredith

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

An Update on the Economy, Iraq, and Ukraine

08/30/2014 Nativegrl77

At the White House yesterday afternoon, President Obama made a statement on a number of important issues ahead of his attendance at the NATO Summit in the United Kingdom next week.

The President first talked about the American economy, noting that it’s growing “at a stronger clip” than predicted, and that we have more work to do to continue this momentum. He then discussed the current U.S. operations in Iraq, reiterating his commitment as Commander-in-Chief to “always do what is necessary to protect the American people and defend against evolving threats to our homeland.”

President Obama concluded his statement addressing the situation in Ukraine, noting that the evidence is clear: “Russia is responsible for the violence in eastern Ukraine.”

Learn more about the President's remarks yesterday.

Top Stories

West Wing Week: “Choose the Harder Right Instead of the Easier Wrong”This week, the White House honored two important anniversaries for women’s rights and civil rights, and the President announced new actions to improve access to quality health care for veterans.

According to a new report from the Bureau of Economic Analysis yesterday, U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 4.2 percent in the second quarter of 2014. The report affirms that second-quarter economic growth was strong — consistent with the recent string of solid job growth and improvements across other economic indicators.

Though more and more women are becoming the primary breadwinners in their families, they continue to make less than their male counterparts at all income levels — a gender pay gap that only widens as people get older. In fact, women who enter the workforce after graduating college are paid less in almost every field of study.

This isn’t right … Steve Mason via Change.org

08/30/2014 Nativegrl77

My daughter Lisa passed away four years ago, but private student loan companies refuse to forgive her debt. Join us in calling on her lenders to forgive debt after a borrower’s death.

Sign Steve’s petition

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Carbon polluters

08/28/2014 Nativegrl77

by Dan Lashof

For far too long, the power sector, and especially coal-fired power plants, have had free reign to dump billions of tons of carbon pollution into the atmosphere — at enormous cost to our communities’ health and prosperity.

Thankfully, earlier this year the Environmental Protection Agency proposed a thoughtful, flexible, and comprehensive action called the Clean Power Plan, which proposes carbon pollution standards for states and their existing power plants.

While two-thirds of Americans support the EPA’s Clean Power Plan, the EPA faces misinformation campaigns and heavy pressure from the fossil fuel industry and their special interests in Washington, DC. That’s why we need you to show your support for the EPA’s Clean Power Plan, right now.

Tell the EPA that you support their efforts to reduce power plant pollution — it takes less than 30 seconds.

If we allow this country’s worst polluters to continue to dump unlimited amounts of carbon pollution into our atmosphere, we will see catastrophic repercussions — particularly among the nation’s most vulnerable communities. The EPA’s Clean Power Plan helps establish a level playing field for cleaner, affordable and more secure energy and will protect the health and safety of our communities for the next generation.

Speak out today to hold the most pervasive polluters in the country — coal-fired power plants — accountable for their actions.

http://action.nextgenclimate.org/clean-power

Thank you for tackling this problem,

Dan Lashof
Chief Operating Officer
NextGen Climate America