Forbes reports the House version of a $1.9 trillion COVID relief package contains “an extra perk for federal workers” paid time off and a bonus to stay at home with children not taking part in in-classroom instruction. It’s a gift to the teacher’s unions who gave about $52,000,000 to Democratic Party and other leftist candidates during the 2020 campaign season. Dems gift to teacher’s unions
The “perk” tucked inside a bill dubbed the Pelosi Payoff is defined by critics as “a personal bailout for bureaucrats.” But it’s more than that; it’s a gift to the teacher’s unions.
While the average American waits for that one-time $1,400 stimulus payment as we struggle with employment and tending to kids who are home at the states that will not reopen schools because they don’t want to upset the teacher’s unions. Federal employees who stay home, thus reducing pressure on the teachers to go back to work, get a bonus.
Per the bill, this includes federal workers who:
“is caring for a son or daughter of such employee if the school or place of care of such son or daughter has been closed if the school of such son or daughter requires or makes optional a virtual learning instruction model or requires or makes op6tional a hybrid of in-person and virtual learning instruction models, or the child care provider of such son or daughter is unavailable, due to COVID–19 precautions…will be privy to a part of $570 million family leave account exclusively for them because the employees “unable to work” because they are caring for children not physically in school full time “due to Covid-19 precautions.” But what about the other Americans unable to work for the same reason? Bupkis!
Forbes writes:
Under the bill as currently drafted, full-time federal employees can take up to 600 hours in paid leave until September 30, up to $35 an hour and $1,400 a week. That’s 15 weeks for a 40-hour employee. Part-time and “seasonal” employees are eligible, too, with equivalent hours established by their agency.
That very nearly amounts to 3.5 months of paid leave plus a potential of $1,400 per week, just to keep the teacher’s unions happy by allowing their-rank and file to continue their paid vacations. Think about that when you cash in that one-time payment,
Forbes calls the wording of the bill “sloppy” and points out it “sets no age limit for the kids who are home from school.” They also report that federal workers whose kids can be in school five days per week but whose school has an option to learn virtually or through a hybrid setup due to pandemic concerns would qualify for the paid time off.
If ever there was an example of bureaucrats taking care of their own while tossing out scraps to the plebeians, this bill, should it pass, is it.
Notice how they’ve already lowered the bar by offering $1,400 payments to the American people in the first place?
President Biden told voters just before the Georgia runoffs last month that should Democrats win control of the Senate, $2,000 stimulus checks would be sent out “immediately.”
Not only are we still waiting, but it’s an amount 30 percent less than promised, and 1/15th of what federal workers under the same difficult conditions everyday people are experiencing would be eligible to receive.
$2000 is not $1400. So @JoeBiden is either a liar or really bad at math. I am going with LIAR. #BidenLied https://t.co/DNKHHWrcIC
— Ryan Knight ☭? (@ProudSocialist) January 30, 2021
Maybe it isn’t that he is lying. Maybe his dementia has caused him to forget how to add and subtract. But then again, neither Schumer and Pelosi have dementia. They simply don’t give a rat’s arse about the average American—only donations to their party.
Democrats even made an attempt to shift income thresholds that might disqualify millions from a new round of $1,400 stimulus checks, prompting an outcry from many who viewed it as a “targeted attack” on the middle class.
At least they’ve backed away from that proposal. We should all be grateful for whatever bones they might throw our way because they really don’t care about the people.
And when might the American people see those COVID relief checks that were supposed to go out “immediately”?
“Democratic lawmakers were poised to push the sweeping package through the House on Friday,” Fox Business reports. “They were hoping the Senate, where changes seem likely, would follow quickly enough to have legislation on President Joe Biden’s desk by mid-March.”
Let’s hope one of those “changes” involves eliminating the gift to the teacher’s unions and that the President and Congress can start seriously trying to help those in need – many weeks after Biden’s inauguration. But I doubt it because $52 million in campaign donations go a long way.
Parts of this post were first seen at The Mental Recession.
Dems gift to teacher’s unions
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