![]() Currently, theft of goods worth at least $250 qualifies as a felony. It raises the threshold for felony larceny, which has not been adjusted in decades. The bill also includes new reforms aimed at reducing solitary confinements stays in prisons creates new diversion programs to steer low-level offenders away from criminal penalties. It will allow criminal records to be expunged for some offenses committed when an individual was younger than 21. It creates reforms targeted at preventing defendants who have not yet been tried from being held solely because they can’t afford bail. It eliminates several mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses, and raises the age at which children can be charged in juvenile court from 7 to 12. The bill touches on nearly every part of the criminal justice system, with an aim of reducing number of people entering it or getting unnecessarily caught in its web. CHARLIE BAKER signed sweeping criminal justice legislation on Friday, capping several years of discussion on Beacon Hill and casting Massachusetts squarely in the national wave of rethinking tough-on-crime laws of the 1980s and 90s.įlanked at the State House by more than a dozen lawmakers from both parties, Baker said, “Viewed as a whole, this bill takes our criminal justice system and makes it better.” At the same time, he said there are parts of the measure he is troubled by and announced that he is filing new legislation to address those. Charlie Baker signs criminal justice legislation at the State House on Friday. Just as strong solidarity and collaboration in the movement were necessary for passing the bill, its implementation and enforcement will also require all allies to work together to see that it becomes not just another law on the books, but a reality, one that changes our culture and brings more genuine respect and value to the contributions these workers bring to families and communities everywhere.Gov. Passing the Bill of Rights, of course, is not only a history-making end, but also a beginning. As the nation’s highest court attempts to erode the right of workers, strategies that incorporate innovative policy solutions and strategic organizing tactics will ensure that the workers’ rights movement will still be able to come together to help transform workplaces. The domestic worker bill in particular is even more significant in the wake of the Supreme Court’s recent Harris v. The same week that Massachusetts passed the Bill of Rights, the state also passed the highest minimum wage law in the country. This win is also part of a wave of strong low-wage worker organizing spreading across the country. ![]() The coalition and the movement benefitted greatly from the efforts of a broad range of JWJ staff, who always recognized the urgency of changing exclusionary labor policies that were vestiges of slavery and Jim Crow in this country.” JWJ also promoted the campaign and brought it visibility by sharing information across their networks. Natalicia Tracy, Brazilian Immigrant Center executive director and co-founder of the coalition, noted, “Massachusetts Jobs With Justice played a powerful role in this effort by directly supporting activities at the state house, specifically in the education of legislators about the importance of the bill. ![]() This victory was made possible because of strong partnerships between workers, employers, advocates and legislators who came together through the powerful Massachusetts Coalition for Domestic Workers, as well as the more than 80 other endorsing and supporting organizations engaging in the campaign. The large-scale grassroots campaign that carried the bill was four years in the making. It was their leadership, experience and stories that helped set into motion a legislative plan to change the landscape for this low-wage workforce. The best part of this victory is that domestic workers were on the front lines of this win. ![]() As momentum builds for significant changes in how the nation’s labor laws regulate home care work, campaigns for other bills are active in another half dozen states as well.īut the Massachusetts bill is the most comprehensive domestic workers Bill of Rights yet, providing clear guidelines for employers codifying the workers’ right to a written contract, just cause termination and maternity leave and affording workers additional protections by bringing them under the coverage of the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination. The trend reflects a growing recognition from workers, employers and allies that domestic work is, in fact, real work and that it deserves real on-the-job protections. ![]() Massachusetts marks the fourth state to pass a domestic workers Bill of Rights in four years, following New York, California and Hawaii. They did it! Massachusetts domestic workers and their allies, including Massachusetts Jobs With Justice, recently passed a statewide domestic workers Bill of Rights. ![]()
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