House Passes Legislation To Support NC Families During COVID-19 Pandemic

North Carolinians Urge Sens. Tillis and Burr to support bill which includes paid sick leave, widespread free testing, food aid and unemployment insurance.

Raleigh, N.C. – Today, the U.S. House passed a bill in response to the coronavirus outbreak, with emergency provisions that include paid sick leave, widespread free testing, food aid and unemployment insurance.

Senators left Washington on Thursday afternoon planning to return on Monday, even as the coronavirus takes its toll on Americans.

Piedmont Rising Executive Director, Casey Wilkinson, released the following statement in response:

“There is only one choice on the Families First Coronavirus Response Act: a swift ‘yes’ vote followed by immediately signing it into law. We are in the midst of a national emergency and while we thank House leadership for their actions today, we are disappointed that Senators Tillis and Burr are not fully addressing this crisis and are instead tearing down the efforts their colleagues have made to protect Americans. The people of North Carolina urgently need Senators Tillis and Burr to stand up for their well-being.”

Background:

• Nationally, there are 32 million people who lack paid sick leave, including 1,462,772 in North Carolina.

• In North Carolina, there are more than 420,000 people who work in the food service industry. Their median hourly salary is $9.26, and the vast majority do not have paid sick leave and cannot afford to miss work unpaid. These individuals, their families and the untold number of people they interact with on a daily basis are all put in harm’s way because of our leadership’s inability to act.

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