Report to the State Convention, 1976 April 9-10
Title
Report to the State Convention, 1976 April 9-10
Description
This is a report to the State Convention of the Indiana Women's Political Caucus from the South Bend-Mishawaka Women's Political Caucus, regarding right-to-employment. The report details what the South Bend-Mishawaka Women's Political Caucus has been doing in order to further their agenda that everyone who wants a job should be given the work.
The report was submitted by Gloria Kaufman, who was a member of the Women's Political Caucus.
The report was submitted by Gloria Kaufman, who was a member of the Women's Political Caucus.
Creator
Kaufman, Gloria; Indiana Women's Political Caucus
Source
Gloria Kaufman Papers, Indiana University South Bend Archives and Special Collections
Date
1976-04-09 to 1976-04-10
Rights
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Identifier
Kaufman_Box1_Folder30_K031
Text
Indiana Women's Political Caucus
Ad Hoc Committee on Right-to-Employment
Report to the State Convention, Anril 9-10, 1976
I . BACKGROUND
On April 19, 1975, the State Convention of the Indiana Women's Political Caucus (IWPC) passed the following resolution:
''The Indiana Women's Political Caucus is committed to the principle of right-to-employment. Every person (including those physically and mentally handicapped) who desires or who needs gainful employment should be guaranteed the opportunity for a job .
Such a principle cannot be established overnight. All members of the IWPC pledge themselves to direct special efforts toward developing both long and short ranGe programs, legislative and otherwise, on local and state levels, toward making right-to-employment a workable principle in the near future. "
II.
WHAT HAVE WE DONE
A. National Ad Hoc Committee
A committee, composed of imaginative and generous people from all over the country, was formed to generate suggestions for new approaches to the employment problem. Both short and long range projects were suggested. We went to the National WPC Convention armed with a few hundred copies of "Implementation Suggestions: Right-to-Employment," a handout summarizing the committee's thinking at that time.
B.
National WPC Convention, June 26-29, 1975, Boston, Massachusetts
We had two purposes--to get a right-to-employment resolution passed at the national level, and to get as many politicians as we could committed to and involved in employment programs. The resolution was passed as an amendment to the U. S. National Women's Agenda. The implementation suggestions were distributed at the workshop on Depression Politics and widely elsewhere. We seemed (quite accidentally) to be concentrating on legislators in states other than Indiana.
C. Free Media Coverage
National radio and press coverage of our employment efforts resulted in requests for suggestions that came from all over the country. The South Bend Task Force on Employment (see D below) mailed a document, "Employment Suggestions" (based upon and expanding upon the national committee's work) , to all who requested it .
D. South Bend Task Force on Employment
A group of professional women was formed to discuss the national committee's implementation ideas , and partkularly to determine how they might be translated into action. The document referred to in II.C. was assembled . Strategies for South Bend were discussed .
• South Bend Task Force on Local CFTA Funds
The group is an off-shoot of above. We decided to test out procedures associated with funds from the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) by encouraging women to apply for grants. The extensive activities of this task force is being orally reported upon by Marie Ritter at the 'Winning through Work" session of this convention. (See II.F.2 below.)
F. Additional Comments
1.
Commitment to full employment on the part of politicians is now commonplace. Currently the Democratic party is considering the adoption of a full-employment principle into its party plank. We encourage the party to do so.
2.
We have also arranged for the "Winning through Work" workshop at the current IWPC convention. Speakers are: Marie Ritter, South Bend CETA Task Force; Carolyn Pfotenhauer, South Bend Manpower Commission; Joanne Hill, Director, Women 's Career Center.
III. COST TO IWPC
All costs have been absorbed by South Bend Task Forces .
IV.
CURRENT PROJECTS
A.
Draft of IWPC position paper supporting Hawkins-Humphrey full-employment bill (H.R. 50) and other full-employment efforts .
The statement will be submitted to the state policy board for approval and then distributed nationally.
Our tentative plan is to stress the importance of legislation that not only achieves but also maintains full employment. That is, legislation MUST PROVIDE FOR AUTOMATIC RESPONSE on the part of government when employment in the private sector begins to fall off at any time in the future. That would require an up-to-date pool of public-service and public-works jobs, constantly kept on file . The mere existence of such a guarantee, according to economist
J.H.G. Pierson, would greatly stimulate the economy. Such a guarantee, moreover, would provide a stability we haven't heretofore experienced.
Target date for distribution of position paper: end of August 1976.
Mail suggestions and criticisms to: Gloria Kaufman, 305 \akewa Ave. , South Bend , Indiana 46617.
B. Draft of proposed amendments to national Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA).
Currently we plan to suggest:
1-a revised definition of underemployment to include full-time persons working at jobs below their qualifications. Thus a biologist who is a full-time gas-station attendant could accept a CETA grant· in her field of biology.
2-provisions for consultants (as with National Endowment for the Arts & Humanities) to approve grants for artists. We are also considering devices to insure that artists get a fair share of C TA funds. Establishing an across-the-board percentage as minimum poses difficulties in that some industrial communities have few artists whereas some non-industrial areas have large numbers of artists . Ideas are earnestly requested.
Target date or draft of amendments: not established.
Mail suggestions to: farie Ritter, 1432 . unnymede, South Bend, Indiana 46615.
Respectfully submitted,
Gloria Kaufman South Bend-Mishawaka Women's Political Caucus
Ad Hoc Committee on Right-to-Employment
Report to the State Convention, Anril 9-10, 1976
I . BACKGROUND
On April 19, 1975, the State Convention of the Indiana Women's Political Caucus (IWPC) passed the following resolution:
''The Indiana Women's Political Caucus is committed to the principle of right-to-employment. Every person (including those physically and mentally handicapped) who desires or who needs gainful employment should be guaranteed the opportunity for a job .
Such a principle cannot be established overnight. All members of the IWPC pledge themselves to direct special efforts toward developing both long and short ranGe programs, legislative and otherwise, on local and state levels, toward making right-to-employment a workable principle in the near future. "
II.
WHAT HAVE WE DONE
A. National Ad Hoc Committee
A committee, composed of imaginative and generous people from all over the country, was formed to generate suggestions for new approaches to the employment problem. Both short and long range projects were suggested. We went to the National WPC Convention armed with a few hundred copies of "Implementation Suggestions: Right-to-Employment," a handout summarizing the committee's thinking at that time.
B.
National WPC Convention, June 26-29, 1975, Boston, Massachusetts
We had two purposes--to get a right-to-employment resolution passed at the national level, and to get as many politicians as we could committed to and involved in employment programs. The resolution was passed as an amendment to the U. S. National Women's Agenda. The implementation suggestions were distributed at the workshop on Depression Politics and widely elsewhere. We seemed (quite accidentally) to be concentrating on legislators in states other than Indiana.
C. Free Media Coverage
National radio and press coverage of our employment efforts resulted in requests for suggestions that came from all over the country. The South Bend Task Force on Employment (see D below) mailed a document, "Employment Suggestions" (based upon and expanding upon the national committee's work) , to all who requested it .
D. South Bend Task Force on Employment
A group of professional women was formed to discuss the national committee's implementation ideas , and partkularly to determine how they might be translated into action. The document referred to in II.C. was assembled . Strategies for South Bend were discussed .
• South Bend Task Force on Local CFTA Funds
The group is an off-shoot of above. We decided to test out procedures associated with funds from the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) by encouraging women to apply for grants. The extensive activities of this task force is being orally reported upon by Marie Ritter at the 'Winning through Work" session of this convention. (See II.F.2 below.)
F. Additional Comments
1.
Commitment to full employment on the part of politicians is now commonplace. Currently the Democratic party is considering the adoption of a full-employment principle into its party plank. We encourage the party to do so.
2.
We have also arranged for the "Winning through Work" workshop at the current IWPC convention. Speakers are: Marie Ritter, South Bend CETA Task Force; Carolyn Pfotenhauer, South Bend Manpower Commission; Joanne Hill, Director, Women 's Career Center.
III. COST TO IWPC
All costs have been absorbed by South Bend Task Forces .
IV.
CURRENT PROJECTS
A.
Draft of IWPC position paper supporting Hawkins-Humphrey full-employment bill (H.R. 50) and other full-employment efforts .
The statement will be submitted to the state policy board for approval and then distributed nationally.
Our tentative plan is to stress the importance of legislation that not only achieves but also maintains full employment. That is, legislation MUST PROVIDE FOR AUTOMATIC RESPONSE on the part of government when employment in the private sector begins to fall off at any time in the future. That would require an up-to-date pool of public-service and public-works jobs, constantly kept on file . The mere existence of such a guarantee, according to economist
J.H.G. Pierson, would greatly stimulate the economy. Such a guarantee, moreover, would provide a stability we haven't heretofore experienced.
Target date for distribution of position paper: end of August 1976.
Mail suggestions and criticisms to: Gloria Kaufman, 305 \akewa Ave. , South Bend , Indiana 46617.
B. Draft of proposed amendments to national Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA).
Currently we plan to suggest:
1-a revised definition of underemployment to include full-time persons working at jobs below their qualifications. Thus a biologist who is a full-time gas-station attendant could accept a CETA grant· in her field of biology.
2-provisions for consultants (as with National Endowment for the Arts & Humanities) to approve grants for artists. We are also considering devices to insure that artists get a fair share of C TA funds. Establishing an across-the-board percentage as minimum poses difficulties in that some industrial communities have few artists whereas some non-industrial areas have large numbers of artists . Ideas are earnestly requested.
Target date or draft of amendments: not established.
Mail suggestions to: farie Ritter, 1432 . unnymede, South Bend, Indiana 46615.
Respectfully submitted,
Gloria Kaufman South Bend-Mishawaka Women's Political Caucus
Collection
Citation
Kaufman, Gloria; Indiana Women's Political Caucus, “Report to the State Convention, 1976 April 9-10,” IU South Bend Archives Digital Collections, accessed April 20, 2024, https://iusbarchives.omeka.net/items/show/169.