Child Care Payment Resolution: Fill & Download for Free

Politicians often try to buy votes with “giveaways”. So we have presidential candidates on the Democratic side promoting free healthcare for all, free college, universal basic income, free public transportation, free child care, reparations to blacks for slavery, free housing, and more.Free stuff is never free and the federal government seems to make a hash out of every federal program so that costs are orders of magnitude higher than claimed, as evidenced by Social Security and Medicare.The current Democratic primaries seems to be stacking up to a contest of which candidate can give away more. It’s as if they don’t assume that there are any adults in the room.In referencing Obama’s use of “The Life of Julia” to promote how his policies would help women to what Democrats are promising today:Under these plans, with the help of Uncle Sam, Julia could enroll her children in day care for free or at a subsidized rate. She could go to community college or a public four-year university without paying a penny. She could claim a federal tax credit to help with rent. She would enjoy a mandated $15 minimum wage at an entry-level position or compete for the millions of government-created jobs promised by the Green New Deal. And of course, she’d be automatically enrolled in Medicare. What follows is an examination of those promises, and others, along with the costs.Universal Child CareChild care is expensive, even more expensive than college tuition in some cases. Families in Massachusetts, the least affordable state for such care, according to one analysis, can expect to pay as much as $34,381 to enroll both an infant and toddler in day care.Sen. Elizabeth Warren plans on making it free for millions of people. The Massachusetts Democrat is the first 2020 contender to endorse universal child care. She envisions subsidized nurseries in every community, “a network of child care options that would be available to every family.”It wouldn't be a nanny state, per se. Warren calls for the government to partner with existing services provided by cities, schools, nonprofits, tribes, and faith-based groups. For families making less than 200% the federal poverty line, the care is free. For anyone making more, Warren would cap their costs at no more than 7% of family income.“In the wealthiest country on the planet,” Warren wrote, “access to affordable and high-quality childcare and early education should be a right, not a privilege reserved for the rich.”Who would pay for all this? According to the candidate, everyone whose net worth exceeds $50 million. How much would they be on the line for? According to independent analysis by the Moody’s Corp., $1.7 billion over 10 years.Debt-Free CollegeThe average college graduate who walks off stage with a diploma, once advertised as the ticket to the middle class, also leaves campus with student loans, now feared as long-term financial shackles. According to an analysis by industry expert Mark Kantrowitz, the average 2016 graduate owed a whopping $37,172. The Federal Reserve estimated a monthly payment of $393 to service that debt.Now White House hopefuls promise the same college education without the crushing expense.Sen. Bernie Sanders has proposed legislation to make community and four-year public colleges free for students from families earning less than $125,000 per year. Warren goes a step farther. She wouldn’t just make tuition free at those same universities, she would have the federal government forgive as much as $50,000 of loans for any graduate earning less than $100,000.Sanders and Warren aren’t the only Democratic candidates being generous with other people’s money. Three other senators, Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kamala Harris of California, and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York., have co-sponsored the Debt-Free College Act. Introduced last month, the legislation would create a one-to-one match of federal to state dollars to cover any costs above the “expected family contribution,” a measure of a family’s financial health as calculated by the Department of Education.Not every candidate is sold on free college, including Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar. The mayor of South Bend, Ind., told students at Northeastern University earlier this month that making the federal government pay their tuition wasn’t feasible, a sentiment echoed by the Minnesota senator during a Monday night CNN townhall.Momentum is moving toward debt emancipation, though, and the costs are significant. According to the Warren campaign, for instance, her plan would create a one-time cost of $640 billion, plus another $1.25 trillion over the next 10 years. Here, too, the wealthy are expected to cover the cost.Guaranteed IncomeThe political promise of a good job has been eclipsed by the prospect of guaranteed minimum wages and, in some cases, guaranteed income regardless of work.Sanders has made increasing the minimum wage one of his hallmarks. The self-described Democratic socialist rails against the current federal minimum of $7.25 as “a starvation wage”and authored legislation to more than double it to $15 an hour. When Sanders first introduced the bill in 2015, only five senators added their names as co-sponsors. That number jumped to 30 just four years later, and every Senate Democrat running for president now backs his initiative.An increased minimum wage pales in comparison to the massive jobs program included in the Green New Deal. Introduced by Sanders acolyte Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, it calls for an economic effort to combat climate change no less dramatic than the mobilization for the Second World War.Also a jobs program, an early GND blueprint released by Ocasio-Cortez’s office promised to put millions of Americans to work overhauling every existing building in the country, rebuilding the national power grid, and jump-starting the clean energy industry. The plan would blaze a path to the middle class for anyone able to follow. It also promised “economic security” for anyone “unable or unwilling to work.”After the more controversial aspects of her proposal sparked an uproar, Ocasio-Cortez scrapped that blueprint in favor of a non-binding resolution that affirmed the overall spirit but not the specific policy proposals of the Green New Deal.Aside from Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, the entire 2020 field has voiced support. Every Senate Democrat running for president endorsed the idea. The remaining mix of governors, mayors, and representatives voiced support for the spirit of the proposal if not the initial specifics.Their hesitation comes from the cost, which the conservative American Action Forum pegged at $93 trillion. While some candidates shy away from specifics on environmental reform and subsequent economic redistribution, Andrew Yang is more than happy to discuss his plans to give away money. The Silicon Valley progressive wants the federal government to cut a $1,000 check each month to every citizen over 18.Yang calls it a Freedom Dividend, his brand name for what economists describe as Universal Basic Income. On its face, the annual cost would be around $3 trillion, though Yang insists the spending would be offset by stimulated growth.ReparationsMore than 150 years after the end of the Civil War, only former Rep. Beto O’Rourke has declined to join every major candidate in supporting the establishment of a commission to study possible government reparations to descendants of former slaves. Even Sanders, though initially hesitant to back payments, said that as president he would sign legislation that creates a commission.The discussion over reparations hinges on what the payments look like, as Harris explained last month in an interview with NPR.Reparations, the California Democrat noted, “mean different things to different people.” For Harris, reparations could mean investing in disadvantaged communities by funding mental health services. For Marianne Williamson, the self-help/spirituality guru, New York Times best-selling author and long shot presidential contender, reparations mean money.Williamson told CNN in January that $100 billion should be paid in reparations over the next decade in the form of economic stimulus and infrastructure investments. She did not say where the money should come from.Affordable HousingThree presidential hopefuls want to help put a roof over a large portion of the population’s head. Warren introduced legislation last month to address what she describes as “an American housing crisis.” Co-sponsored by her Senate colleague and primary competitor Gillibrand, the Warren bill would spend $445 billion to do two major things.First, build as many as 3.2 million new housing units for lower-income and middle-class families. Second, provide mortgage assistance to help people who were hurt by the financial crisis more than a decade ago.Warren touts an analysis by Moody’s that found the bill would be deficit neutral, a balance only achieved by increasing taxes and fees over the next decade.Harris has her own housing bill but geared it toward those who rent their homes. According to the summary of the bill, which was introduced last year, the Harris plan would create a tax credit for anyone spending more than 30 percent of their income on rent. Depending on the individual’s income, the government would pick up between 25 and 100 percent of the excess amount spent on rent.‘Medicare for All’It was dismissed as a progressive pipe dream four years ago. So-called Medicare for all has since become all but official Democratic orthodoxy in this presidential primary. Eleven stalwarts demand some version of it. Five others -- apostates in their own party -- prefer more modest plans. Sanders is very much the OG of Medicare for all. His plan would offer the most generous benefits and, in theory, would eliminate private health insurance altogether.“The current debate over Medicare for all really has nothing to do with health care,” he said at a recent news conference announcing the legislation. “It has everything to do with greed and profiteering. It is about whether we continue a dysfunctional system.”Fixing that system would mean dropping the 8.8 percent uninsured rate to zero and lumping the 155 million Americans who are insured through employer plans with 20 million who have coverage through the individual market, 60 million current Medicare beneficiaries, and tens of millions now without insurance. But the costs, according to both liberal and conservative economists, are staggering.The libertarian Mercatus Center at George Mason University estimated last year that an earlier version of the plan would cost $32.6 trillion over 10 years. Gerald Friedman at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, put that number at $14 trillion.Sanders argued that overall spending on health care in the U.S. would drop as a result of his plan even as overall government spending would spike.How does Sanders plan on paying for it? According to a five-page memo released by the senator’s office, a grab bag of options including a 70% tax on those making above $10 million a year, fees on financial institutions, and a mandatory 4% income-based premium on employees plus a 7.5% income-based premium paid by employers.In all, the Democrats’ “free stuff” menu is sure to tempt voters in the primaries that begin in nine months. Which of those offerings survive to be placed before the larger electorate in November 2020 is anyone’s guess, as is the ultimate choice voters will make. If a Democrat moves into the White House two months later, the work of fulfilling at least some of these campaign promises will begin. Closing the deal, especially if Republicans retain control of the Senate, is sure to be far tougher than selling it was to a receptive base.The Free-Stuff Primary: What Democrats' Promises Will Cost | RealClearPolitics

“just stop worrying about it, that's a useless waste of energy”“snap out of it, stop being so self absorbed”“I don't know how you do it, I could never deal with (the situation) ““omg, I feel for you, that would suck, I'm so glad I never got involved with (person, place, thing, situation)”“I guess you're learning that wasn't very smart”“whew! Better you than me, I would have (insert impossible resolution they also couldn't have done if they were in your shoes) ““sorry to hear that. Hey, did you hear Mr Perfect and I are going to Aruba for 2 weeks, sooo excited. We sooo needed this after <insert perfectly normal work stress>” This is especially cutting when you were just opening up to them about some money or health issues and how down you're feeling about it.What a bummer, sorry. Hey Ann and I are planning on running the Chicks with Feet 5K next month. Been training hard, eating clean, feeling sooo good, maybe YOU should try eating clean?” <love it when this is response when you share that you were just diagnosed with a debilitating disease like breast cancer or heart problems, that are going to severely affect your life >I lost 8 lbs when I cut ALL sugar, dairy, meat, gluten and taste out of my diet, omg feel sooo awesome! (when you're feeling ugly and tired and they know you have a health condition that doesn't allow for restrictions like those in your diet)“hmm, that would be a toughie. Luckily Brad is great with money, our house is paid off, we've already saved all the money for the kids college, our retirement funds are 6 years beyond where they should be - he's just so great with money!” (when you just shared how you're concerned about how you're going to pay your electric bill because your car broke down and had an expensive repair. Especially cutting when they are only able to do these things because their parents gave them the down-payment on their home, paid for their college degrees, routinely give them generous cash gifts and provide free child care)

Here are some rights and benefits guaranteed by law to every Employee in India that you must know about.1. Written Employment AgreementWritten employment agreements are in essence employment contracts. Before starting to work for someone, employees have to make sure to enter into such contracts. Having a valid employment contract has become an essential part of employment nowadays. The contract establishes the employee-employer relationship. It contains the terms and conditions regarding the following.WagesJob DesignationPlace of workingWork hoursNon-disclosure of confidential information and trade secretsDispute resolution methodsBoth the employer and employee have to fulfill the terms and conditions of the contract. The employment contract helps in the enforcement of both the employer and employee’s rights2. Minimum wagesEvery employee working in the organized sector has a right to a minimum wage. A minimum wage not only guarantees bare sustenance but also provides for education, medical requirements and some level of comfort.This Minimum wages Act provides this guarantee. The Act fixes the minimum wage for some scheduled employments. For these employments, this Act applies to the whole of India. The minimum wages are given under this Act apply to both skilled as well as unskilled laborers. This minimum wage is not uniform for all sectors across the country. Both the Central Government and State Government have the power to fix minimum wages according to the following factors.Type of workWorking hoursRegionCost of livingCapacity of the employer to payThis rate is notified for every applicable industry by the appropriate Government in the Gazette.3. Protection from Sexual harassment at the workplaceSexual harassment at workplace is a very serious issue. After a landmark Supreme Court judgment, we got the Sexual harassment of Women at Workplace(Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. It is a criminal offence punishable by the IPC for up to three years with or without fine. Sexual harassment includes one or more of the following.Physical contact and advancesA demand or request for sexual favoursMaking sexually colored remarksShowing pornographyAny other unwelcome physical, verbal, or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.The problem with women employees is most of them are afraid to report sexual harassment at workplace. They fear for the security of their job especially when the person harassing is a senior employee or employer. But women employees should have in mind that their safety and dignity comes first.4. Work hours and overtimeMany laws in India provide for a specific work hour and the amount of overtime wages. The major rules, are available in the Factories act. The working hours are different for adults (above 18 years of age), women and young children (aging from 14 to 18).An adult cannot work for more than 48 hours in a week and not more than 9 hours in a day. If the employee works overtime, he is entitled to twice his regular wages for the extra time.However, employment for women is restricted from 7:00 PM to 6:00 AM. This can be relaxed to 10.00 PM to 5:00 AM with proper permission. Working hours of child workers are limited to 4.5 hours a day. Female child workers are prohibited to work between 7:00 PM to 8:00 AM.In addition to this, a weekly holiday is necessary for the employees. An interval period of rest for at least half an hour is also available to the employees. The work shall be arranged such that it does not exceed 12 hours on any day.5. Pay for public holidaysRepublic Day (January 26), Independence Day (August 15) and Gandhi Jayanti (October 2) are the three national holidays observed in India. It is mandatory to grant leave to all employees on all the three days irrespective of the establishment.If they want their establishment to work on these days, they need to seek prior permission from the appropriate authority. The employer also must provide compensatory leave or double wages to employees working on those days. Moreover, the compensatory leave should be given within 90 days of such national holiday.Each State has its own regional festival holidays. Employees have the right to get to paid day-offs during those holidays as well.6. Vacation and vacation payWe do not have the concept of vacation pay in India. It is called annual leave/earned leave. Every employee in India working for at least 240 days in a year is entitled to 12 days of annual leave. This duration varies for adults and young children. An adult worker can avail one day of earned leave for every 20 days of service. A young worker can avail one day of earned leave for every 15 days of service. Thus, adults get 15 working days as annual leave and young workers get 20 working days as annual leave.The normal pay is given to the employees for the annual leave days also. The worker can carry over the annual leave to the next year. However, it is not possible to carry over more than 30 days of leave.7. Pregnancy and parental leaveA pregnant woman employee has the right to avail paid pregnancy leave in India. Our constitution directs the States to provide maternity relief for women employees.Recently, the maternity leave was raised from 12 weeks to 26 weeks. Out of 26 weeks, a maximum of 8 weeks is available as pre-natal leave.Even adoptive, surrogate and commissioning mothers have the right to avail maternity leave. The number of days varies for each though. The Maternity Benefit Act deals with the rules regarding maternity pay.The Central Government provides for child care leave and paid paternal leave. But there is no such legal obligation on the private sector to provide parental leave. It is the sole discretion of the employer.8. Equal pay for men and womenOur Constitution mandates equal pay for equal work for both men and women under Article 39 (d). Equal pay means not only the basic salary but also the other benefits and allowances. The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 obligates the employer to pay equal pay for equal work. However, the employer cannot reduce the pay of the employees in order to show equal pay9. What if an employee does not get paidThe Payment of wages Act directs the employers to pay wages within a specified time. If the employee is not receiving remuneration within that time, he can approach the Labour Commissioner or file a civil suit. For employees getting a salary above Rs. 18,000, a civil action against the employer is also available.Also, payment of wages below the minimum wage rate amounts to forced labour. Our Constitution prohibits forced labour. The employee can also file a case if he does not get the minimum wage.10. What happens to employees in case of sale of business?When the employers change due to sale, acquisition or merger, the conditions of service relating to wages, paid holidays, work hours, etc., should not be changed without giving prior notice to the employees.11. Rights of an employee on probationA probation period for employees is usually 6 months. The employer has the discretion to extend it for another 3 months. But the maximum probation period cannot exceed 2 years.An employer is free to terminate the services of the employee only when the employee is not suitable for the job or his work is not satisfactory. However, an employee has the right to receive proper notice before termination. An employee also has the right to ask for a proper inquiry of the problem if the reason for termination is other than unsatisfactory work.12. Provident FundThe Employee’s Provident Fund (EPF) is a scheme providing certain benefits to salaried employees. The Employees Provident Fund Organisation of India (EPFO) oversees and regulates this scheme. The employees can use it for the following.RetirementMedical CareHousingFamily obligation ( like marriage expenses)Education of ChildrenFinancing of Insurance PoliciesBoth the employer and the employee contribute equally to the provident fund. Every month the contribution is at the rate of 12% of the basic salary and dearness allowance. Yearly interests are credited to the fund at a rate fixed by the Government.This is a voluntary payment but an employee may opt out of this scheme only at the start of the job. Even if one-month contribution is made by the employee, it is not possible to opt out of it. The amount can be withdrawn subject to a waiting period of maximum two months for emergent needs and necessary expenses. The rules specify limits of withdrawal and the necessary years of service for each purpose. For example, an employee can withdraw 50% of the EPF contribution only after 7 years of service. This is also possible only for 3 times during the employment