Economic Justice
by Ashleigh Crocker Let’s cut to the chase—Virginia’s public workers are the backbone of our communities. These are the home health care workers who take care of your parents and grandparents, the teachers who spend all day trying to teach your kids to read, bus drivers, firefighters, social workers, and many others who keep our […]
Economic Justice
News
Big Labor Wins Bring “Unions For All” One Step Closer
Richmond, VA-–The summer of 2024 has been an extraordinary time for labor, with big wins for workers in traditional union roles alongside victories for workers in more surprising roles: theater techs, graduate students, baristas, and game developers at World of Warcraft, among others. Several recent successes in Virginia demonstrate the power of joining a union and collectively bargaining to change the lives […]
News
3 Things I’d Like to See in a Budget Deal
By Ashleigh Crocker It’s been fun watching Senator Louise Lucas dunk on Governor Glenn Youngkin over the budget the last few weeks. Democrats in the House and Senate want to give teachers and school staff raises, fund schools, ensure corporations pay their fair share in taxes, and legalize marijuana. Governor Youngkin doesn’t want to do […]
News
What Do I Know?
By shay bell Every single day, I wake up and do my silly little tasks. I fill in some colors for a graphic. I write some words about the state of our Commonwealth. Every week, I get on this platform and tell you that everything is within our power to fix. But what do I […]
Press Release
Virginia Coalition for Progressive Values To Host a Press Conference Ahead of Veto Session on the Status of Progressive Legislation
Richmond, Virginia—Progress Virginia and the Virginia Coalition for Progressive Values will host a press conference to discuss the status of several vetoed pieces of legislation. The press conference will feature remarks from legislators, as well as stories from people whose lives were personally impacted by the legislation. Focus areas will include minimum wage, paid family […]
Press Release
Multimillionaire Governor Says Working Families Don’t Deserve $15 An Hour
Richmond, Virginia—Virginia is slowly becoming a better state for workers, and Governor Glenn Youngkin is not going to stand for that. On Thursday, the Governor, who divides his time between his state-funded lodgings at the Governor’s Mansion and his 30-acre ranch in the wealthy DC suburb of Great Falls, vetoed life-changing legislation that would have raised the minimum wage […]
Press Release
Governor Youngkin’s Tax Plan: More Money For His Rich Friends, Higher Costs For Everyone Else
Richmond, Virginia—Working families in our community would pay more for everything from a bar of soap to their Netflix subscription under Governor Youngkin’s tax package, while the top 1% of earners would enjoy a nearly $10,000 tax cut. Today, we’re celebrating that the Senate Finance Committee saw through the Governor’s campaign rhetoric and voted SB […]
Press Release
Historic Minimum Wage Increase Passes General Assembly, Moves to the Governor’s Desk
Richmond, Virginia—In a victory for working families, SB1, sponsored by Senator Louise Lucas, passed the House of Delegates today The bill increases the minimum wage to $13.50 this year, and $15 an hour starting in 2026. SB1 will now move to Governor Glenn Youngkin’s desk for a signature. Youngkin, who travels between the Governor’s Mansion […]
Press Release
Historic $15 Minimum Wage Increase Will Include Farmworkers For The First Time
Richmond, Virginia—Today, we moved closer to pay equity and racial justice when the Virginia Senate voted to remove the exemptions that excluded farmworkers from earning the minimum wage. HB157, sponsored by Delegate Adele McClure, narrowly passed the Senate by a vote of 20-19 and will move to the Governor’s desk for a signature. The exemption […]
News
When Did Glenn Youngkin Last Buy His Own Groceries?
Here’s something that will no doubt shock you: Glenn Youngkin hasn’t met very many people who make minimum wage. In fact, he thinks minimum wage workers barely exist: he told the reporters that he believed employers pay the minimum wage only in “very rare circumstances”and that he thought a minimum wage hike wasn’t necessary. After […]