Bipartisan Plan for Dreamers Flounders in the Senate – On the final day of debates, several immigration proposals failed in the Senate after Trump threatened to veto any plan that did not meet his requirements. A bipartisan bill failed to obtain the 60 votes needed to pass. It would have offered a path to citizenship for nearly two million Dreamers in exchange for funding for the border wall and changes to family reunification policy in an attempt to appease the president. With less than three weeks until the DACA program expires, the future of Congressional negotiations to find a solution remains more uncertain than ever. José López Zamorano has this report from Washington.
In California, More Workers Enjoy More Benefits Under Family Leave Law – California is enacting new laws that expand benefits as well as the number of workers that qualify for those benefits under the Paid Family Leave Law, which has been part of the labor code for 15 years. The program, the first of its kind in the nation, gives workers paid leave to care for a sick family member or a newborn child. State workers have been tasked with spreading the word. Fernando Torres joins us from San Francisco with the details.
Latinas Make Inroads in Construction – Texas’ construction industry is one of the most active in the country, but it faces obstacles to growth. According to national industry spokespersons, eight out of ten contractors have difficulties finding qualified workers. Thus, more and more women, many of them Latina, are making inroads into the industry. It is no small challenge; construction work requires physical strength and forces women to navigate workplaces fraught with hostility and prejudice, as Joy Diaz reports from Austin.
