Sen. Daughtry receives the Maine AFL-CIO Edie Beaulieu Award
AUGUSTA — On Thursday, Jan. 11, Sen. Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, received the Maine AFL-CIO Edie Beaulieu Award for leading legislative campaigns to strengthen workers’ freedom to organize and to guarantee workers paid family medical leave and for centering working class issues as a legislator. The Edie Beaulieu Award is given to a lawmaker for their outstanding service to Maine workers. In addition to sponsoring these pro-worker bills, Sen. Daughtry sits on the Legislature’s Labor and Housing Committee, which – prior to becoming the Assistant Senate Majority Leader – she served as Senate Chair.
“It’s an honor to receive this award, and to be recognized alongside such amazing labor leaders from across Maine. Tonight is clear proof that together, we’re stronger. When we stand in solidarity with each other, we can accomplish anything,” said Sen. Daughtry. “When Maine’s PFML program launches, every worker in the state will be able to take paid time off to take care of any of the many emergencies that come up in life. That includes sick leave and parental leave, which is what people typically think of. But we also made sure it covered leave for foster and adoptive parents, and for military families preparing or returning from deployment.”
Only 15 percent of American workers have access to any sort of paid leave, and less than 60 percent of the workforce has access to unpaid leave under the Family Medical Leave Act. Nationally, one in four women takes fewer than 11 days of parental leave after giving birth despite a recommended six- to eight-week recovery period. Fourteen other states and the District of Columbia have instituted a statewide paid family and medical leave program, including every other state in New England. When Gov. Janet Mills signed the biennial budget, which included Sen. Daughtry’s Paid Family and Medical Leave proposal, Maine became the 15th state to establish its own program.
Founded in 1956, the Maine AFL-CIO is a state federation of more than 160 local labor unions, representing more than 40,000 Maine workers and retirees. The organization works to improve the lives and labor conditions of its members – and all working people across the state.
Sen. Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, celebrates with Meg Sinclair, MSNA member and nurse at Maine Medical Center, after receiving the Maine AFL-CIO Edie Beaulieu Legislative Award.
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