(Jun 16, 2021) Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler
HARRISBURG, June 16 -- Labor leaders and lawmakers from across Pennsylvania took to the steps of the Capitol in Harrisburg on Wednesday morning to hold a Labor for Schools Rally. The group called for the legislature to take bold, job-creating, life-saving action and remediate the lead, asbestos and other toxins currently in schools across the commonwealth. Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler, D-Phila, who organized the rally, joined with nearly four dozen colleagues from the House and Senate to demand action and to push back on the excuse that Pennsylvania does not have the funds to fix schools. “We can use just a portion of the $7 billion in federal funding that has already been sent to PA to this substantive investment in public buildings from Philly to Scranton to Allegheny County,” Fiedler said. “We could create thousands of jobs — good paying, union jobs!” The lawmakers were joined by Rosemary Boland, Scranton Federation of Teachers; Arthur Steinberg, American Federation of Teachers; Nicole Hunt, Unite HERE 634; Aaron Chapin, PSEA; Darrin Kelly, Allegheny-Fayette County Central Labor Council; Frank Snyder and Sarah Hammond, PA AFL-CIO. Fiedler was joined at the rally by 33 House members from across PA, including Rep. Austin Davis, D- Allegheny, and Rep. Kyle Mullins, D- Lackawanna. Nine senators joined the rally, led by Sen. Vincent Hughes, D-Phila., and Sen. Lindsey Williams, D-Allegheny. Hughes spoke powerfully on the issue, Read more