Second stimulus check: Is there a payment for essential workers in the HEROES Act?
Essential workers are still pushing for better pay since they never had the choice of staying home because their work continued during Covid-19 outbreak.
The House of Representatives approved the HEROES Act and it is now up to the Senate to pass the bill which among other measures it will provide a second round of payment for millions of Americans amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Even though the Republican-controlled Senate said that the bill is ‘Dead on Arrival’ it is speculated that they will end up negotiating with the House to pass yet another stimulus relief package. This would mean people will receive another $1,200 stimulus payment.
The same amount could be issued that was sent out during the CARES Act while married couples who file joint tax returns would get $2,400. Children, up to three, would also get the $1,200 amount with this new round of payments, opposed to the $500 they got in the first round.
Essential workers demand aid amid pandemic
Since the coronavirus hit the United States millions have been forced to shelter at home as the country raced to flatten the curve of the infection’s rate of spread. Millions of others, however, never had the choice of staying home because their work continued even as the pandemic got worse.
The group of essential workers include: Doctors, nurses, policemen, and firefighters haven't been alone on the frontlines. Grocery clerks, janitors, cleaners, doormen, security officers, and airport workers have taken risks alongside them.
These people are now seeking hazard pay, layoff protection and adequate supplies of personal protective equipment. The Senate has said that they are willing to negotiate hazard pay for essential workers after the $3-trillion HEROES Act passed in the House of representatives.
Some lawmakers say that essential workers should get paid extra for putting their lives at risk everyday during the outbreak, “We are asking everyday Americans to show up to work, and put their health and their lives at risk,” Representative Linda Sanchez, D-California, said.
So Congresswoman Linda Sanchez and House Democrats included $200-billion for hazard pay in the HEROES Act. There is much in the HEROES Act that Republicans say they simply cannot support but on hazard pay for essential workers, many say there’s room to negotiate.