In the News
Broken Promises: In Rick Scott’s Economy, The Middle Class Loses
Under Rick Scott, Florida’s middle class has stagnated, while the wealthiest special interests have gotten even wealthier. Hundreds of thousands are still looking for work, people are dropping out of the workforce, and too many of the post-recession jobs don’t pay enough to support a family.
Rick Scott promised Floridians jobs, and good jobs at that. He’s broken his promise. He put the wealthy first, and the middle class last. Consider the facts:
- 64% of Florida job openings pay less than the living wage.
- Rick Scott has not only failed to meet his promise to create 700,000 jobs on top of normal growth, he’s now trying to pretend he never said it.
- He is giving millions of tax dollars away to for-profit out-of-state charter schools at the expense of public schools.
“Rick Scott broke his promise to Floridans. Hundreds of thousands of Floridians have left the workforce, because finding a job is just too hard in Rick Scott’s economy. Even if you do find a job, the chances are that it doesn’t pay enough to support your family or send your kid to college. All the while, Scott says the idea of raising the minimum wage makes him ‘cringe.’ Rick Scott’s been focused on giving away millions in state contracts and tax breaks to the wealthiest people — and the middle class don’t even get table scraps,” said Florida Democratic Party Chair Allison Tant.
Background
Report: Low-Wage Jobs Are Flooding Florida. a lot of the new jobs tend to be low-skilled jobs that pay less than the jobs they replace. In short, people are finding more jobs in Florida — but they aren’t necessarily finding “good jobs”…few jobs that are high-skilled and well paying. (FCIR, 10/8/12)
64% Of Florida Job Openings Pay Less Than Living Wage. The study released this week reported 13 job seekers for every projected living wage job opening in Florida, with 64 percent of all job openings paying less than a living wage. (Tampa Tribune, 12/4/13)
PolitiFact: If You Don’t Own A Business, You Haven’t Seen Most of Rick Scott’s Tax Cuts. Lawmakers and Scott have done several things to reduce the financial burden on groups of Floridians, but the benefits have been aimed mostly at business owners — not average working people. If you don’t own a business, you haven’t seen most of these cuts. (PolitiFact, 6/3/13)
“Scott Has Backtracked” On Job Promises Since He Was Elected. Scott has backtracked since he was elected, saying he merely meant the state would create 700,000 jobs in seven years. However, in an October 2010 televised debate with Democratic opponent Alex Sink, Scott said, “So our plan is seven steps to 700,000 jobs, and that plan is on top of what normal growth would be.” (Palm Beach Post, 3/30/12)