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July 13, 2011

Winning Rent Reform for New York

By  Make the Road New York Staff / Make the Road New York



MRNY members protest for rent reform.

On June 21, State legislators voted to extend and – for the first time in 18 years – actually strengthen the rent laws that protect the more than one million New Yorkers living in rent-controlled and rent-regulated housing.

Key improvements to the laws include decreasing the power of landlords to raise rents and their ability to remove housing units from rent control, thus upholding important protections for low-income families who are struggling to hold onto their housing.

While these improvements are less significant than what is need to protect New York State tenants, they are significant for MRNY members who have been working to reform New York’s rent laws.

Together with the Real Rent Reform coalition, MRNY members have been at the forefront of the statewide effort to ensure affordable housing and bolster rent regulations. Through direct action and advocacy, we have maintained a powerful counter-balance to the real estate lobby, which has been working long and hard to weaken rent regulation. MRNY members have mobilized several times to Albany, participated in tent city actions citywide, collected thousands of signatures and clocked hundreds of hours of street outreach.

MRNY members are keeping up the fight for comprehensive rent reform. MRNY members like Gladys Puglla, Board Chair and Housing and Environmental Justice Project leader, struggle to pay rent each month:

“The lack of affordable housing in New York is deeply troubling,” she said. “I commend the legislators in both houses who supported this campaign. Now we must work together to ensure affordable housing and basic protections for all working class New Yorkers.

And we hope you will join us in this fight! Contact Housing and Environmental Justice Organizer Hilary Klein for more information on how you can get involved.


More on: Improving Housing 

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Historic Paid Sick Days Victory in NYC!

New York City just became the largest city in the U.S.to win paid sick days! On May 8, 2013, the City Council passed legislation to require paid sick days for one million New Yorkers. Without this critical legal protection, workers risk losing their jobs for taking a sick day. When workers go in to work sick, they put the public and their co-workers at risk of disease.

Starting April 2014, all workers will be protected from being fired if they must take a sick day to care for themselves or a sick family member, and workers at larger employers will receive 5 paid days of sick leave each year.

This major workplace justice and public health victory is the product of a four-year campaign led by courageous workers and small businesses who stood up for what’s right. We thank our partners at the Working Families Party, the NYS Paid Family Leave Coalition, SEIU 32BJ, the Progressive Caucus, Speaker Quinn and Council Members Brewer and Ferreras, for standing with us for NYC’s workers.


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