PHOENIX, Ariz. - A coalition of social activists and care-industry groups is calling for Congress to pass President Joe Biden's American Families Plan.

It's part of Biden's $3.5 trillion infrastructure bill, with about $400 billion to boost home and community-based services for vulnerable people who need assistance. Studies estimate more than 40 million Americans provide hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid care for family members.

Ai-jen Poo, executive director of Caring Across Generations, said the need for paid family leave and affordable care services in Arizona and elsewhere continues to grow.

"Families also require more supportive services," said Poo, "for veterans and people with disabilities, and older adults - who wish to remain in the comfort of their own homes and communities. But these options have too often been out of reach. "

Caring Across Generations sponsored a recent online town hall meeting to discuss Arizona families' needs. Most Republicans and some Democrats oppose the Biden plan, saying it costs too much.

The session included advocacy groups, elected officials and family members who provide care for a child with a disability, or a retired military spouse with service-related injuries. Poo said the needs are great.

"Nationwide," said Poo, "we have 850,000 older adults and people with disabilities who are either ineligible for Medicaid services in their homes or communities, or have been on waiting list for these services for as long as five or more years."

Also speaking was U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton - D-Phoenix - who is on several key subcommittees that will make recommendations to the full House on parts of the Family Plan.

"In this plan, Arizona home- and community-based infrastructure would receive $631 million over 10 years for 13,000 direct-care jobs," said Stanton. "We're going to need a lot more than that because of the aging of our community. That is a good place to start."

Stanton added the Biden plan also includes universal pre-kindergarten, early-childhood programs for three- and four-year olds, tuition-free community college, and would make the federal Child Tax Credit permanent. And it aims to reduce the cost of prescription drugs.

PITTSBURGH - As businesses across the country deal with a massive labor shortage, Pennsylvania aims to entice people back to the workplace by increasing safety standards and the minimum wage.

At a Thursday news conference in Pittsburgh, Gov. Tom Wolf announced he's signed an executive order that calls on the Department of Labor and Industry to study how Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards can be implemented in Commonwealth workplaces. The governor also wants the General Assembly to pass legislation that would increase the minimum wage, which currently is the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour.

"Unfortunately, while our Republican legislature refuses to act, Pennsylvanians are getting left behind," Wolf said. "Are you aware that all of our neighboring states - West Virginia, Ohio, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland - all of them have higher minimum wages than Pennsylvania? That is embarrassing."

Wolf is asking the General Assembly to pass legislation introduced by Sen. Tina Tartaglione, D-Philadelphia, outlining a gradual increase to $15 an hour by 2027. The executive order also directs Labor & Industry to ensure its contractors and grant recipients are in compliance with labor and workplace safety laws, including the Minimum Wage Act and the Equal Pay Act.

An estimated 4.3 million workers voluntarily left their jobs across the country in August, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. With more than 100,000 workers authorizing potential strikes this month, Darrin Kelly, president of the Allegheny/Fayette Central Labor Council, said it shows people have had enough.

"The workers are the economic engine of this city, this Commonwealth, this country - and as we see, worldwide," he said, "and to have an engine work properly, you have to pay them properly, respect them, allow them to retire with dignity."

Wolf also is requesting the General Assembly extend OSHA safety rules to public-sector employees in the state who are not currently protected. Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward, R-Hempfield, responded to the announcement, calling it "executive overreach that hurts small businesses."

MILWAUKEE, Wis. -- A Wisconsin group that advocates for working families is launching a new campaign, which connects federal policy to the outsourcing of local jobs, and the ads place a key focus on one of the state's U.S. senators.

Opportunity Wisconsin's new messaging calls into question the support of Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., for the 2017 2017 tax cut bill pushed through by the GOP.

Critics say the bill incentivized corporations to move jobs overseas, highlighting the closing of a Janesville plant this year.

Meghan Roh, program director for Opportunity Wisconsin, said the campaign is meant to establish accountability.

"To really highlight some of the dangerous and destructive policies that our elected officials are pushing that prioritize the wealthy and well-connected, versus Wisconsin workers," Roh explained.

Johnson's office declined to comment before deadline, but over the past year, the senator made comments supportive of outsourcing during a speaking engagement, citing worker shortages in the U.S. and the chance to produce products elsewhere at a lower cost.

Johnson has not announced his intention to seek a new term.

Kathy Pawluck, a manufacturing worker laid off when the Hufcor manufacturing plant closed this summer, is featured in the ad. She lamented how the abrupt move left workers in a sudden bind, and questions the motivations of corporate leaders.

"It really is sad that we lost a great company in Janesville, just because someone wants to make more profit off of it," Pawluck stated.

Aside from outsourcing, subsequent analysis of the 2017 tax cuts suggests the law didn't do much to elevate lower-income earners.

LINCOLN, Neb. - A coalition of Nebraska community organizations and supporters are collecting signatures for a ballot initiative that would raise the state's minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2026.

Nancy Williams, president and CEO of the group No More Empty Pots, said the measure can directly address poverty, which she believes is at the root of a host of challenges facing Nebraska families - from food and housing insecurity to educational opportunities for youths.

"When we have a higher wage for more workers," said Williams, "that will give them more income to be able to take care of basic needs."

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Nebraska consistently ranks among states with the highest number of people working multiple jobs to make ends meet.

Forty two percent of Nebraska's lowest-earning families spend more than a third of their income on housing alone.

Critics of raising the minimum wage have argued that it could hurt small businesses and claim most jobs paying basement wages are held by teenagers.

In 2014, Nebraska voters raised the minimum wage through ballot initiative from $8 to $9 an hour, which took effect in 2016. Tipped workers earn just $2.13 an hour.

Williams said raising the minimum wage will impact one in five Nebraska workers across the state, and most are not high school students making extra cash.

"Eighty one percent, from the data that we have, are aged 20 and older," said Williams. "About a third of those have a high school diploma. So it is not just for teenagers, it's for everyone who does the work."

Williams added that many teenagers contribute to their family's income, and all workers deserve to be paid a fair wage.

She said gradually increasing the minimum wage will increase opportunity for Nebraska families to thrive, and will also be an important step toward achieving racial and gender pay equity across the state.

The deadline to turn in at least 87,000 verified signatures to make the 2022 November 8 ballot is the first week of July next year.