CWA Members Rally to Protect Social Security and Medicare

Last week, members of CWA Local 1120 rallied in Hudson, N.Y., at a city park to raise awareness about proposed cuts to Social Security and Medicare. The group of about 16 members and volunteers held signs and spoke to passersby about the cuts that a group of Republican members of Congress have proposed and what they would mean for retirees and those living with disabilities. Allies included the Mayor of Hudson Kamal Johnson and members of the Working Families Party.

Cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and other social safety net programs could have life-threatening ramifications for people already living on fixed incomes. Another method to draw down spending is to raise the age of retirement, with current proposals calling for a retirement age of 69. For workers in labor-intensive jobs, this could mean risking injuries or death on a job from which they cannot afford to retire.

The group of activists marched to the local Social Security office, where they continued to share information. Activists called for increased taxes on the wealthy to help keep Social Security, Medicare, and similar programs funded. This sentiment is reflected in a recent Forbes.com article by economist Christian Weller, who wrote, “Starting those adjustments with benefit cuts, especially regressive ones such as increasing the retirement age that hurt lower-income earners more than higher-income earners, is exactly the wrong approach, however. Raising additional revenues from high-income earners should be a preferred policy approach that strengthens rather than weakens the program.”

 
Members of CWA Local 1120 rallied in Hudson, N.Y., to share information and call for legislators to halt cuts to social safety net programs including Social Security and Medicare.