As most of you are keenly aware, the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation authorized by the CARES Act – the $600 weekly unemployment insurance (UI) federal supplement to state benefits – expires on July 31st without Congressional action. The HEROES Act, which passed the House of Representatives on May 15, extends the CARES Act’s UI provisions through January 2021, but the bill has not been taken up by the Senate. The HEROES Act also addresses most of IATSE’s subsequent COVID-19 legislative priorities.
Please review and share the following article posted today on IATSE.net, IATSE Members Share Why UI Benefits are Crucial For Entertainment Families, Urge Congress to Act. (Link: https://www.iatse.net/news/entertainment-workers-share-why-ui-benefits-are-crucial-families-urge-congress-act)
This article summarizes the current state of play as it relates to the expanded federal UI benefits and the HEROES Act. It also renews a call to action for IATSE members and allies to write their Members of Congress to continue to assert IATSE’s subsequent COVID-19 legislative priorities AND call their Senators to tell them to support the HEROES Act. The article is accompanied by the attached compilation of stories from a few IATSE kin who have shared why UI benefits are crucial for entertainment workers and their families. I encourage you to share this article and these stories widely.
Additionally, as the COVID-19 pandemic rages on in the United States, we know that voting by mail will be a key part of making sure working people’s voices are heard. As we have seen in several primary elections since the onset of the health crisis, our state election systems have been challenged by the large increase in vote by mail.
The attached document from the AFL-CIO provides a quick guide to understanding how voting by mail works and why we need it now – and busts some of the myths that surround the process. Please share this information with your members to help answer questions and dispel false narratives surrounding voting by mail.
So long as the pandemic persists, we highly encourage voting by mail. If, however, voting requires you to go outside we encourage all our members and their families to follow the CDC safety guidelines for COVID-19 and wear a mask, practice social distancing, and limit the amount of items you come into contact with.