Feb. 18—Editorializing on a substantial raise to state or federal minimum wage rates is becoming an annual occurrence. But since it's also becoming a constant topic in legislatures nationwide and now that President Joe Biden has taken office, here we go again. In short: Don't do it. It's a bad idea, and one made worse by COVID-19. No doubt, some workers are hurting as they struggle through all .
1. President Biden signed an executive order Tuesday extending the moratorium on mortgage foreclosures by three months to June 30, a policy intended to help people unable to keep up with their mortgage payments during the COVID-19 pandemic. Biden also ordered government agencies to extend the window for people to apply for mortgage forbearance, the White House said. With millions of Americans still unemployed due to the pandemic, 12 percent of homeowners with mortgages have missed payments. Biden's order will let anyone with a federally guaranteed mortgage apply for a pause or reduction in their payments until June 30, and will exempt them from foreclosure. The Trump administration paused foreclosures and evictions last March, and Biden extended the policy on his first day in office. [CBS News]2. Fast-food workers in 15 U.S. cities went on strike Tuesday to demand an increase of their minimum wage to $15 an hour. The strikes by McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's employ
Home care and nursing home workers, including members of the National Domestic Workers Alliance and the Service Employees International Union, will also take solidarity action on Tuesday. Alongside the $15 minimum wage, they ll demand better wages, benefits, and training, Fight for $15 said.
The care workers will be taking action outside agencies that oversee Medicaid in at least 15 cities, including Atlanta and Los Angeles, calling for a major investment in Medicaid, it said. As a home care worker who has been told I m essential but treated like I m expendable, this fight is about pay but it s also about respect and a voice on the job for all workers, Joyce Barnes, a home care worker from Richmond, Virginia, said in a statement provided by Fight for $15.