LABOR DAY
This weekend is Labor Day, a long weekend that???s set aside to honor American workers and the American Labor Movement. Governor Gina Raimondo???s weekly video address discusses the contributions that Rhode Island workers have made and the foundation we’ve strengthened together in the last two and half years to create new jobs and help put Rhode Islanders back to work.
Under the Governor???s leadership, Rhode Island has invested in job training so middle class Rhode Islanders can stay competitive even as the economy changes. We???ve made new investments in infrastructure through RhodeWorks, and we???ve finally started projects to renovate our schools. These investments have helped create 3,800 new construction jobs since January 2015. Our unemployment rate, which was the highest in America in 2014, has been at or below the national average since January, and since Governor Raimondo was sworn in, we???ve created nearly 17,000 new jobs.
There will always be more work to do, and we need to stay focused to ensure that all families have economic security. The budget the Governor signed last month makes good on a promise to increase the minimum wage, and she is calling on the General Assembly to pass paid sick leave legislation when they return to finish their work later this month.
This Labor Day, while you???re at the neighborhood barbecue or enjoying the last moments of summer at the beach, take a minute to give thanks to the working women and working men who fought for the weekend.
Happy Labor Day.
Watch the Governor???s Weekly Video Address and read the full transcript of this week???s message below.
It???s fitting that we plan barbecues on Labor Day. After all, Cesar Chavez famously said, ???If you really want to make a friend, go to someone???s house and eat with him??? The people who give you their food give you their heart.???
That solidarity and friendship among workers inspired and maintained the American Labor Movement, which protected workers and built the American middle class. Here in Rhode Island, labor played an important role to spark the Industrial Revolution. And today, laborers with the Building Trades are literally changing the skyline of our Capitol City as cranes rise over downtown Providence.
We???ve been through some tough times over the last 10 or 20 years. But Rhode Islanders are tough people, and they???re finally are headed back to work.
Since the start of 2015, we???ve cut our unemployment rate by more than a third and we???ve created nearly 17,000 new jobs. In fact, there are more jobs in Rhode Island right now than any other time in our history.
I???m determined to ensure that every Rhode Islander is equipped to compete for the jobs companies are creating. It???s why we created the Rhode Island Promise Scholarship and why we???ve invested in job training. I also believe that working people deserve a dignified wage and fair hours.
I was proud when Rhode Island became one of the first states in America to require paid family leave back when I was Treasurer, and I???m hopeful that we can expand that commitment when the legislature reconvenes this month to guarantee earned sick leave. With support and partnership from labor, we???re going to increase our minimum wage in January. And after nearly a decade without a raise, Rhode Island???s homecare and direct care workers are set to get a raise for the second year in a row.
This Labor Day, I hope you have an opportunity to spend time with your family and friends. And while you???re at the barbecue or the beach, take a minute to give thanks to the men and women who fought for the weekend, an honest wage and a safe workspace.
Thank you and have a great weekend.