Dear Women's Caucus Members, Legislative Colleagues, and Partners,
Happy Spring! March was a busy month for the Women's Caucus, and we are pleased to update you in this April newsletter about some of our work this past month.
We begin this Spring with a strong set of strategic and legislative priorities and are ready to get to work to support these topics and pieces of legislation. During March's Women's History Month, we finalized our priorities through an extensive process and shared them broadly through events and communications work. We are currently continuing to share these priorities with legislative leadership as we get to work supporting these critical areas.
We hope that you find this newsletter informative and resourceful--please see below for updates on our priorities, upcoming April events, and more. We appreciate your partnership, and as always encourage you to connect with us. All are welcome to contact our Executive Director, Nora Bent. Let's get to work!
Sincerely,
Senator Joan Lovely & Representative Hannah Kane
MCWL Co-Chairs
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Strategic Priorities
- Elevating Women’s Economic Opportunity & Eliminating Barriers
- Addressing Racial and Gender Disparities in Health Care
- Empowering Women in Government
Legislative Priorities
- An Act relative to a livable wage for human service workers
- H.191, Rep. Khan & S.84, Sen. Friedman
- This bill addresses disparities between the rate of pay for human service workers employed directly by the state and those employed by agencies with state contracts. Requires the state, over the course of 4 years, to increase the rate of reimbursement for human service providers in order to reduce, and ultimately eliminate, the pay disparity. An estimated 80% of human service workers in MA are women, and nearly 1/3 are people of color. Human service workers are more likely to live below 150% of the poverty level.
- Supports our “Elevating Women’s Economic Opportunity & Eliminating Barriers” Strategic Priority.
- An Act relative to salary range transparency
- H.1849, Rep. Fluker Oakley and Rep. Cutler, & S.1191, Sen. Jehlen
- This bill would have MA join a growing number of states in requiring employers to disclose the salary range when advertising a position. Research shows that salary range transparency in the hiring process is one of the best tools to help close the gender wage gap. Posting salary ranges is already a common practice in many industries, but some businesses are reluctant to do so for fear of being put at a competitive disadvantage. Having a uniform state law removes that barrier and puts everyone on a level playing field.
- Supports our “Elevating Women’s Economic Opportunity & Eliminating Barriers” Strategic Priority.
- An Act to increase access to disposable menstrual products in prisons, homeless shelters, and public schools
- H.534, Rep. Barber and Rep. Livingstone & S.1381, Sen. Jehlen
- This bill requires all schools, prisons, and homeless shelters to provide free access to menstrual products. Period poverty impacts the lives and abilities of menstruators to fully participate in society. For many, this is a large expense and something that is not as accessible as needed. Period products are a basic need that should be provided in schools and other settings.
- Supports our “Addressing Racial & Gender Disparities in Health Care” Strategic Priority.
- An Act relative to postpartum depression screening
- H.2163, Rep. Fiola & S.1375, Sen. Friedman
- This bill requires MassHealth to provide coverage for postpartum depression screenings by pediatricians for 12 months. This coverage is already covered by the mother's physicians, so this would expand coverage to pediatrician visits as well. Postpartum depression is vastly underdiagnosed and that is in part because women are not being screened enough. Oftentimes women do not come forward with their symptoms, so having a pediatric physician who is trained to spot symptoms can be critical. Expanding the screening time period from 6 months to 12 months can make a difference.
- Supports our “Addressing Racial & Gender Disparities in Health Care” Strategic Priority.
- An Act supporting parents running for public office
- H.669, Rep. Meschino and Rep. Connolly & S.422, Sen. Jehlen
- Currently, childcare costs incurred during campaign events and activities are considered personal expenses and therefore not eligible for reimbursement under MA law. This bill would allow state and local candidates to use their campaign funds to pay for campaign-related childcare expenses. Childcare should be treated like other allowable expenses, such as printing literature and purchasing tuxedos for campaign events. This bill would eliminate a major barrier for parents seeking public office in their communities and advance equitable political representation throughout the Commonwealth.
- Supports our “Empowering Women in Government” Strategic Priority.
Endorsed Legislation
- You can see the full list of our endorsed legislation here.
- An act to protect gender pay equity, filed by Rep. Livingstone, Rep. Domb, and Sen. Jehlen was heard before the Joint Committee on Public Service on April 4.
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To close out Women's History Month, we held a briefing for our legislative colleagues and partner organizations to share the Women's Caucus priorities for the 2023-2024 legislative session. Thanks to all who attended!
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- On Tuesday, April 11 at 1 pm join the Department of Labor Women's Bureau for "Black Mothers at Work: A Discussion on Workplace Challenges and Supports." Register and see more information here.
- On Tuesday, April 11 at 3 pm, please join the Bay State Birth Coalition and Birth Equity & Justice Massachusetts for, "Ring the Alarm: Birth Equity & Accountability in Maternal Health Care in MA." Register and see more information here.
- On Friday, April 14 at 1 pm in room 428, along with the Black & Latino Legislative Caucus, the House Asian Caucus, and Rep. Nguyen, we are co-hosting a panel discussion for the Women of Color Caucus at Harvard Kennedy School. This panel will feature Rep. Nguyen, Sen, Edwards, Rep. Howard, and Rep. Montaño.
- On Wednesday, April 19, the MA Commission on the Status of Women will be hosting its Girls Empowerment Leadership Initiative (GELI). You can see more details and registration info here--we encourage all to share this widely with your constituents, as this program is open to girls ages 14-22.
- On Wednesday, April 26, the Women's Caucus Sexual Violence Task Force, co-chaired by Rep. Higgins and Rep. Farley-Bouvier, will be hosting our annual Denim Day commemoration. Please join us at 3 pm at the Grand Staircase and on social media--details to come to our legislative colleagues. In the meantime, we encourage you to learn more about Denim Day here.
- Our partners at the Massachusetts Office of Victim Assistance are hosting several webinars and training in honor of Victim Rights Awareness Month. Check out the full schedule here.
Please let us know if you have events that you would like to be highlighted in the next newsletter or shared on social media.
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Every year, our Board of Directors meets with members of leadership to discuss the work and priorities of the Women's Caucus. These meetings are productive and collaborative--a time to discuss our shared priorities and areas of further partnership.
To date, we have met with Senate Minority Leader Tarr and House Minority Leader Jones (photos above). We look forward to meeting with the Governor and Lieutenant Governor, the Senate President, and the Speaker of the House soon.
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Please let us know if you have articles or social media that you would like to be highlighted in the next newsletter or shared on social media.
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Please let us know if you have accomplishments that you would like to be highlighted in the next newsletter or shared on social media.
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