News release from Democrat 15th Senate District Candidate, Jack Morris:
Morris details plan to retain skilled employees, remove barriers to better-paying jobs
(September 9, 2014) – Candidate for State Senate District 15 Jack Morris announced a pair of policy initiatives to address critical workforce issues on Tuesday. Morris plans to file legislation immediately if elected in November.
Work sharing
To help Indiana businesses protect jobs and keep skilled employees on the job through tough economic times, Morris proposed moving forward with an innovative strategy called work sharing. Work sharing, which enjoys bipartisan support, allows employers to reduce their employees’ hours during an economic downturn and backfill the loss of wages by drawing partial unemployment benefits.“Work sharing is a win-win scenario for Indiana employers and working Hoosiers,” said Morris. “Employees stay on the job, employers keep the workers they’ve invested in to train and the state saves money. This is a no brainer, and if I’m elected I’ll file legislation to get it done on day one.”
Removing barriers holding working Hoosiers back
A longstanding barrier facing individuals trying to lift themselves out of poverty is a phenomenon known as the “cliff effect.” Acting as a disincentive, the “cliff effect” is encountered when the raise a Hoosier receives from pursing higher paying jobs results in a loss of more in benefits than they gained in pay. For example in Allen County, a Hoosier receiving a 50 cent raise – from $15 to $15.50 an hour – incurs a net loss of $6,828 in child care assistance.“The cliff effect is a barrier that prevents many Hoosiers from pursing better-paying jobs,” said Morris. “I’ll fight to remove those obstacles so working families can pull themselves up and make work pay.”
Morris would file legislation to streamline and progressively reduce the application of benefits in a way that incentivizes Hoosiers to pursue higher-paying careers while maintaining the ability to support their families.
Jack Morris is the Democratic candidate for State Senate District 15. Morris is a lifelong resident of Fort Wayne, a practicing attorney and advocate for strong schools and working Hoosiers. For more information on Jack Morris, please visit: https://www.morrisforstatesenate.com/.
Note from the campaign: Work sharing and the Indiana General Assembly
In the 2014 legislative session, HB 1338 would have implemented work sharing and had wide bipartisan support. The bill was pulled from committee and did not receive a vote. This delay is more troubling since a Federal grant would help cover the cost of the implementing the program and reimburse the Dept. of Workforce Development the cost of the benefits for the two years of the Federal grant.
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