Monday, June 16, 6:30pm - Zoom
Every major analysis of the 2024 election agrees that the defection of working class voters from the Democratic Party – more than their embrace of Trump – explains the disappointing results. This was also true in Massachusetts.
To help stem this disturbing trend, we are organizing to make the Massachusetts Democratic Party more of an activist party that fights on behalf of working class families.
To that end, our mission is to shift the focus of the Mass. Democratic Party, from just electing Democrats to embracing policies that directly benefit working families
The next opportunity to do this will be the five platform hearings scheduled by the Party from June 6 through June 26. These meetings let us voice our concerns and advocate for legislation important to working class families.
All platform hearings will be held virtually via Zoom. Pre-registration is required, and links to register are included below. Any registered Democrat in Massachusetts (as of the hearing date) is welcome to participate. We urge you to attend one of the hearings and speak out to urge that the Party return to its working class roots.
Platform Hearing Schedule (Click on any date to register):
Submit Written Testimony Here. The deadline to submit testimony is July 13, 2025.
Next Steps:
(note: none of the priority areas include Palestine, so please bring your messaging to end the Genocide and to Stop Sending Weapons to these Zoom Calls. Thank you)
1. Decide which platform hearing you will attend and register for it. Sign in to Zoom early so that you can get a place in line to speak; past practice is first come, first served, with no guarantee that all will be heard. Each person will be given only a few minutes, and so it is important to prepare what you are going to say in advance. Practice beforehand so you don't go over your allotted time.
2. The key introductory point you want to make is that we have to bring back working class families back into the Democratic Party if we are to win future elections.
3. Three priority areas defined by the Massachusetts labor movement and many progressive groups are as follows:
Corporate Fair Share (HD.3390 / SD.1684
Key Point: Massachusetts only taxes corporations with offshore profits at 5%, while most other states tax those profits at 40-50%. Mass needs this income because of the shortfall in the state budget and pending federal cuts. The slogan is, “Tax Overseas Profits.”
$20 Minimum Wage (HD.2107 / SD.382)
Key Point: This bill proposes to gradually increase the minimum wage in Massachusetts. It starts by setting the minimum wage at $16.25 and then incrementally increases it over several years, reaching $20.00 by 2027. The bill also requires the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development to annually adjust the minimum wage based on the rate of inflation, starting in 2027. Additionally, the bill sets the minimum wage for tipped employees at 60% of the overall minimum wage, also subject to annual inflation-based adjustments.
Wage theft (H1868 S118).
Key Points:
Protects workers from common wage theft violations such as failure to pay wages, failure to pay the minimum wage, or failure to abide by overtime laws.
It protects workers from independent contractor misclassification, ensuring workers are able to receive the benefits they are entitled to. Protects workers against retaliation from their employer for reporting violations and increases the power of the attorney general's office to enforce wage theft laws.
4. Consider asking other people in your community to join you in submitting testimony. If each of you speaks to the merits of a different bill, you’ll have more time to talk about its importance to working class families.
5. At the convention we will demand the Party fund this effort, including the salaries for experienced organizers trained in relational organizing who would act as a mobile force to aid individual committees.
Thank you for doing your part in supporting a Democratic Party that is responsive to the needs of all people, and especially to working class families.