Fighting for the Working Class

Kara is passionate about creating high quality jobs and the pathways to attain those jobs. She is also a strong advocate for worker protections on the job site and fair compensation.

As Vice Chair of the High Education & Employment Advancement Committee, she is hyper-focused on job training and economic opportunity for the people of Ansonia, Derby, and hardworking people across the state. 

Her work has earned her legislative awards from ManufactureCT and the Connecticut State Firefighters Association, for her workforce development bills. 

Kara is the founder and Co-Chair of the bipartisan Blue Collar Caucus, focused on rebuilding the middle class through policy that helps workers across a variety of sectors, from the building trades to education, healthcare, and many more.  Her organizing and advocacy led to the largest pro-worker reform bill in a generation this year, spanning over 120 pages in length. Kara is deeply committed to fighting for the working class, rebuilding the middle class, and putting rungs back on the economic ladder for all who work hard to make a living. 

Kara has helped write and pass laws that:

• Protect workers against wage theft, including closing loopholes to protect workers in the building trades
• Establish stricter guidelines for employers of warehouse distribution centers around the use of quotes for their workers. Workers will no longer be forced to sacrifice bathroom breaks or meals to meet production targets
• Partner with unions to create construction jobs on housing development projects
• Strengthens protections for workers on state-funded construction projects  by allowing the Comptroller to withhold payments to contractors who fail to pay prevailing wages, breaking the law
• Guarantees adequate break time for mothers to express breast milk during the workday
• Makes companies disclose when they use AI for decision making and tell their employees when layoffs are related to AI or other technologies
• Create STEM pathways for High School students to prepare them for a 21st Century job market
• Establishes a home buyers assistance program for firefighters, police officers, and EMS workers
• Waives fees at state colleges and community colleges for active National Guard members, police officers, firefighters, and EMS workers
• Establishes license reciprocity for EMS professionals
• Improves pay for sate police at DOT projects
• Financially protects healthcare employees and education employees assaulted on the job by protecting lost wages and benefits, increasing reimbursement to 100% from 75%, covering out of pocket medical expenses, stopping employers from requiring workers use their accrued time off to cover their missed work due to assault
• Strengthens safety enforcement for crane operation and site workers
• Creates a grant program for volunteer fire departments for Junior Firefighter programs
• Provides five years of state health insurance for the families of fallen volunteer firefighters, expanding upon the program that already covers paid firefighters and police officers
• Helps businesses to offer healthcare by providing a tax credit when they contribute towards employees' individual health insurance coverage
• Helps small businesses and biotech companies through a new research and development tax credit to help them grow and create good paying jobs in our state
• Establishes the Office of Business Affairs to assist residents who own small businesses
• Refocuses the Small Business Boost Program to better serve economically distressed communities like Ansonia & Derby