Thread by @SarahRiggsAmico

I have a Harvard MBA, have been an exec for 18 years & have owned trucking/logistics companies since 2009 w/thousands of employees. As a business owner, I think the decision to end $300 in additional unemployment benefits is a TERRIBLE idea for Georgia. Here’s why: 1/🧵#gapol

https://twitter.com/politicalinsidr/status/1392847636965863429

Federal minimum wage has been $7.25/hr since 2009. Georgia min wage (non-FLSA) is $5.15/hr — that’s about 1/3 of the average hourly pay for a babysitter in GA. Given GA’s low vaccination rates, it’s no wonder folks aren’t rushing back to low-wage, (potentially) high-risk work. 2/

Speaking of childcare costs: “The U.S. economy in March had 7.6 million fewer people employed than before the pandemic, including a sharp drop-off among working mothers.”

Ripping away an extra $300 in UI sure as hell isn’t going to help GA moms afford care or go back to work! 3/

Gov Kemp is ending PUA benefits amid an affordable childcare crisis (& #SHEcession), mere weeks after a nat’l survey ranked Georgia LAST among states for working moms — many of them broadsided by the #COVID19 Pandemic. Almost like he doesn’t care, right? 4/ajc.com/life/things-ar…

The Gov says industries like logistics need relief. I work in logistics & own 2 logistics firms. The driver shortage is real — but it existed for YEARS before the $300 PUA. The American Trucking Association says the shortage was 1st documented in 2005. 5/bit.ly/3ofM6ud

Even w/a severe driver shortage, some of us still recruit & retain great drivers. Our secret? We pay great wages/benefits (incl fully funded health insurance). We protect our unions & INVEST in our people. Our Q4-2020 driver retention? 98%. Wages matter. 6/bit.ly/3bGD4Sj

An extra $300 of UI is a lifeline to working families who haven’t recovered from the #COVID19 economy. That $300 can’t make the unemployed rich — but it COULD mean safer childcare, better food security or avoiding eviction for countless Georgians. 7/cnet.com/personal-finan…

Our Gov & Labor Commissioner could pursue policies that help GA businesses AND Georgians: fully fund schools, expand Medicaid, raise GA’s min wage, address rising childcare costs & increase vaccination rates. The saddest part of today’s decision is they CHOSE not to. 8/8 #gapol