Pittsburgh, Pa. − April 23, 2020 − Today, Senator Lindsey M. Williams and Senator Pam Iovino announced that they will co-host a Democratic Policy Hearing on Tuesday, April 28, 2020 from 10:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon. The hearing will take place on Workers Memorial Day, which is the annual day of remembrance for workers killed or injured on the job and a day for renewing the fight for strong safety and health protections for all workers.
This announcement follows today’s Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee and Community, Economic, & Recreational Development Committee joint hearing, which focused on the Wolf Administration response to the COVID-19 pandemic across Pennsylvania and the unavoidable impacts that mitigation has had on business owners.
“I appreciated the chance to speak with the business owners and industry representatives who spoke today to hear more about how we as legislators can make this process clearly defined, uniformly applied, and transparent,” said Senator Williams. “However, I am upset that our first responders, healthcare workers and other essential front-line workers were excluded from this hearing. Workers should never be an oversight, especially right now. Business cannot function without a healthy workforce. If we are hearing from business and industry, we should be hearing from front-line workers at the same time.”
“Today’s hearing was an opportunity to hear directly from representatives of Pennsylvania’s business community and members of the Governor’s cabinet on where we are and where we are heading with regard to COVID-19. The candid assessments of administration officials on the response to-date and how we can best implement a measured, data-driven, and regional approach to a phased re-opening of our Commonwealth, coupled with the input from business advocates on their views going forward, were invaluable” said Senator Iovino. “Today’s hearing, however, did not include the voice of the workers and first responders, and without their contribution the conversation is incomplete. I am looking forward to engaging front-line workers and essential personnel at next Tuesday’s hearing to get a better understanding of how we can re-open Pennsylvania’s economy, while first and foremost, keeping all Pennsylvanians safe.”
WHO: Senator Lindsey M. Williams and Senator Pam Iovino
WHAT: In Recognition of Workers Memorial Day: A Policy Hearing with Front-Line Essential Workers
WHEN: Tuesday, April 28, 2020
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
WHERE: Streaming live on the PA Senate Democratic Caucus facebook page.
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