Affirmative action and health care were the big talking points Wednesday in Aurora as State Rep. Morgan Carroll rolled out Sen. Barack Obama’s new economic plan for working women in Colorado.
About 50 people joined Carroll and an all-woman panel at the Community College of Aurora to discuss the challenges faced by Colorado women in the work force and what his new plan could mean for them.
“There is a perception that everything is equal. But if you are a woman, you know that’s not true,” said Denise Burgess, a panel member and CEO of Burgess Mechanical in Denver.
Obama’s plan calls for equal pay for women, who earn 79 cents for every dollar men make in Colorado, and bumping the minimum wage up to $9.50 by 2011.
Lorena Garcia, a 26-year-old woman in the nonprofit sector, said people need to fight to make sure Amendment 46, which would end affirmative action in Colorado, doesn’t pass in November.
“Affirmative action has always been about merit, not under represented people,” Carroll, D-Aurora, said. “The whole reason we need it is because equally-qualified people were being turned away.”
Attendees also voiced their concern over access to health care for families.
Some said it should be taken out of the hands of employers.
“The fact that health insurance is employer-based doesn’t make sense to me,” said Rhonda Lipson, a 50-year-old accountant in Denver. “People change jobs five or six times over their life. Why should it be tied to work?”
Obama’s plan also promises tax cuts up to $2,100 for working mothers, a guaranteed seven days of paid sick leave and more after school and summer learning programs in Colorado.
Steve Graff: 303-954-1661 or sgraff@denverpost.com
