Full Text of HR0639 102nd General Assembly
HR0639 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Eighteen to 34 year olds comprise 48 percent of | 3 | | our civilian labor workforce across the United States and are | 4 | | heavily employed in precarious industries, including retail, | 5 | | leisure, hospitality, and part-time work; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Seventy percent of young adults are living | 7 | | paycheck to paycheck; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, During a recession, the unemployment rate for | 9 | | younger workers often rises faster and higher compared with | 10 | | other workers; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, In the State of Illinois, employers are free to | 12 | | terminate workers at any time without providing a reason, | 13 | | preventing workers from accessing reliable employment and | 14 | | preventing workers from improving their workplaces; and | 15 | | WHEREAS, Median wages have declined or have remained | 16 | | unchanged in the last decade in the industries employing young | 17 | | adults; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Workers at the 10th percentile saw only 3.3 | 19 | | percent cumulative growth in hourly wages between 1979 and | 20 | | 2019; meanwhile, workers at the 50th percentile saw 15.1 |
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| 1 | | percent growth over that period, and workers at the 90th | 2 | | percentile saw a staggering 44.3 percent growth; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, Not all employers offer paid family and sick | 4 | | leave, disproportionately impacting young adults and working | 5 | | families in Black and Latinx households; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, Eighty-three percent of those workers who | 7 | | contracted COVID-19 reported they did not receive paid sick | 8 | | leave from their employer nor any government assistance, such | 9 | | as unemployment benefits; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, Unstable, unpredictable, and rigid scheduling | 11 | | practices disproportionately affect low-wage workers, heavily | 12 | | skewed with working young adults, making it nearly impossible | 13 | | for them to balance work responsibilities and personal needs; | 14 | | and | 15 | | WHEREAS, Unpredictable schedules are associated with | 16 | | financial
insecurity, high stress, poor health outcomes, and | 17 | | less time spent with family; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Fluctuation in hours and compensation make it | 19 | | extremely difficult for young adults to earn enough money to | 20 | | live without going in debt; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Fifty-seven percent of those who remain in the | 2 | | Illinois restaurant industry say they are leaving due to | 3 | | unlivable wages; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Economic barriers, such as child care, | 5 | | transportation, safe housing, and food, impact young adults at | 6 | | a higher rate, creating difficulty in finding and obtaining a | 7 | | high quality job; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, Apprenticeships and pre-apprenticeship programs | 9 | | are not representative of all demographics and communities in | 10 | | Illinois; and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, According to a 2020 report from the Illinois | 12 | | Department of Labor, only four percent of Illinois apprentices | 13 | | are women, and 29 percent are Black and Latinx; therefore, be | 14 | | it
| 15 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 16 | | HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 17 | | for young workers in Illinois to thrive in a recovering | 18 | | economy, we urge the Illinois General Assembly to adopt a | 19 | | Young Workers' Bill of Rights, which includes the rights to: | 20 | | (1) Inherit an economy that provides them the security | 21 | | of a secure wage, a stable work schedule, employer | 22 | | contributions, worker's compensation, and a pathway to |
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| 1 | | consider unionization regardless of their employment | 2 | | classification; | 3 | | (2) Maintain their income and employment in the event | 4 | | of illness and life changes; | 5 | | (3) Afford safe, clean housing, food, transportation, | 6 | | and child care; and | 7 | | (4) Have exposure and access to early career | 8 | | experiences regardless of their socioeconomic background; | 9 | | and be it further | 10 | | RESOLVED, That we urge Illinois leaders to expand the | 11 | | availability of youth apprenticeships in low-wealth | 12 | | communities and develop regulations to ensure young adults in | 13 | | all industries receive monetary compensation; and be it | 14 | | further
| 15 | | RESOLVED, That we urge policymakers to actively involve | 16 | | young workers and advocates in the policymaking processes that | 17 | | determine the economic prosperity of future generations.
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